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The New Orleans Saints have signed their top draft pick in 2014, WR Brandin Cooks, according to an announcement made earlier today by Mickey Loomis.
Terms of the deal were not officially disclosed, beyond that it is a four-year deal, As always, the news hit Twitter first...
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Brandin Cooks (<a href="https://twitter.com/brandincooks">@brandincooks</a>) signs four-year contract with <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Saints&src=hash">#Saints</a>: <a href="http://t.co/diBXNGElkJ">http://t.co/diBXNGElkJ</a> <a href="http://t.co/ee7aexNsf1">pic.twitter.com/ee7aexNsf1</a></p>— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saints/statuses/468097252569784321">May 18, 2014</a></blockquote>
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...and then Mr. Cooks himself showed some excitement:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Who Dat nation baby! <a href="http://t.co/LUkQJhJTCV">http://t.co/LUkQJhJTCV</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23blessed&src=hash">#blessed</a></p>— Brandin Cooks (@brandincooks) <a href="https://twitter.com/brandincooks/statuses/468092391980007425">May 18, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Click here for the official team release on the signing.
Terms of the deal were not officially disclosed, beyond that it is a four-year deal, but Mike Triplett of espn.com had some ballpark speculation in his coverage of the news:
Rookies have begun to sign deals much sooner in recent years since the NFL instituted a new rookie wage scale in 2011, with the financial terms of deal essentially slotted into place. Cooks' deal was expected to be worth around $8.4 million, with a $4.4 million signing bonus and a $1.5 million salary-cap hit.
Kat Terrell was on the job for the nola.com, and filed this piece, noting that the contract reportedly matches Kyle Long's 2013 rookie deal at the #20 spot, and that it includes a fifth-year option. She also reminded us that fourth-round pick Khairi Fortt is now the lone remaining unsigned draft pick for the Saints.
Here we go, folks!! What are your thoughts? How are you feeling?