Tampa Bay Buccaneers will see a familiar face in the NFC South in 2025.

The New Orleans Saints drafted wide receiver Brandin Cooks in 2014, and he played for them for three years. He’s been a journeyman across the league, playing for four other teams since then, but he’s back to face the Bucs again — the NFL’s Ian Rapoport reported on Friday that Cooks is returning to the team that drafted him.

Cooks’ most recent stop was with the Dallas Cowboys, who he played for for the last two years. Now, he reunites with the Saints.

Cooks played the Buccaneers five times in his career in New Orleans, netting 27 catches for 306 yards and no scores. Across his entire 11-year career, Cooks has had 41 catches for 510 yards in eight games — surprisingly, he’s never caught a touchdown pass against Tampa Bay. The Bucs will hope to keep it that way, especially as they’re likely to add another cornerback in the rotation to guard him when the two teams face off twice a year in 2025.

With Cooks’ signing, the Saints pair him with Chris Olave with Derek Carr under center in an effort to dethrone the Buccaneers atop the NFC South for the first time in five years. The Bucs brought back Chris Godwin themselves, though, and continue to improve the defensive roster, so that will be easier said than done.

Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2025 offseason.