Tom Brady wasn't against Brandin Cooks trade

In 2017, Brandin Cooks led New England Patriots wide receiver in snaps, targets, receptions, yards, yards per catch, and touchdowns.

Apparently, Tom Brady won't miss that production.

The Patriots didn't see Cooks as a true No. 1 receiver prior to his trade to the Los Angeles Rams, a source informed of the situation told NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. In addition, Tom Brady wasn't against the decision to part ways with him, Rapoport reported.

The Brady-Cooks deep connection lacked efficiency, but the speedster did help stretch the field for the rest of the offense.

According to Rapoport, despite Cook's numbers, he wasn't a great fit in the Patriots' offense. Cooks is a great talent who wasn't as precise as the Patriots needed and didn't mesh with their idea of spacing, per Rapoport.

The Patriots moved on after Bill Belichick decided he wasn't going to pay Cooks No. 1 receiver money. New England also believe wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell, who missed the entire 2017 season because of a knee injury, will be a productive receiver for the team this season, per Rapoport.

Conversely, the Rams believe they are getting a player who can transform Sean McVay's offense, and one the head coach has coveted. Paying a first-round pick for a player with just one year left on his contract speaks to L.A.'s fascination with a receiver the Patriots didn't deem a game-changing target.

New England will now move forward with Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, Mitchell, Phillip Dorsett, Kenny Britt, Cordarrelle Patterson, Riley McCarron, and Cody Hollister among its receiver depth chart. Brady has dominated with worse groups of receivers than his current collection. If they can stay healthy -- a big if -- the Pats' offense should be just fine.

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