New Orleans Saints News: Tight End Jared Cook Expected To Play On Monday Night
The New Orleans Saints have been the champions of the NFC South for the last couple of weeks, but there is still a lot of work to do. As the Saints come off a loss to the San Francisco 49ers last Sunday, they also lost tight end Jared Cook midway through the game to a concussion. It was obvious that the offense lost a bit of a step when he went out, but the good news is that he will be back for Monday Night Football.
The NFL is very serious about concussions and does not take them lightly as it is all about the safety and health of the players. No matter how serious or not a concussion may be, the league and all teams have to side with caution and make sure a player is well enough to return to the field.
On Sunday, Cook was well on his way to one of his best games as a New Orleans Saint before being knocked out of the game. He had two big receptions against the 49ers which both went for touchdowns and equaled 64 yards from quarterback Drew Brees.
Cook’s second touchdown catch is when he suffered a big hit from 49ers defensive back Akhello Witherspoon which caused the concussion. No one was entirely sure how much time he would miss, but the tight end hardly missed any at all and will be ready for the Saints’ next game.
The #Saints Super Bowl XLIV team will be honored at the game Monday night
Payton was asked about bringing the 2009 squad back this weekend for the 10-year reunion#XLIV pic.twitter.com/eOBmBVIdSN
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) December 14, 2019
As reported by NOLA, Cook has spent the week in concussion protocol as mandated by the NFL, but things are looking good for him. On Saturday, Saints head coach Sean Payton said that he has liked what he’s seen since the concussion took place and that they “expect him to play and be ready.”
The New Orleans Saints are in a good position right now as they can’t drop any farther than third place in the NFC playoff race. Still, they would like to snag the second spot or even the first seed to get a first-round bye and hopefully home field advantage throughout the postseason.
In order for the Saints to get the number one seed, they would need to win out and get some help from other teams. The rest of the Saints’ season begins on Monday Night Football when they welcome the Indianapolis Colts into the Superdome for what is the first of three must-win games.
Jared Cook had a slow start to his first season in New Orleans, but he has started to come about in the last few weeks. He is a dangerous weapon and a primary target for Drew Brees which the Saints need to have as they look to finish the season out strong.
