Tom Brady is losing one of his top receivers Chuck Howley Jersey , and Jared Goff is getting a speedy new target.

The New England Patriots traded receiver Brandin Cooks to the Rams on Tuesday for Los Angeles' first-round draft pick, the 23rd overall.

New England also sent a fourth-round choice to the Rams, and the Patriots got a sixth-rounder from Los Angeles.

The 24-year-old Cooks had 65 catches for 1,082 yards and seven touchdowns in his only season with the Patriots. His receiving stats were second on the defending AFC champions' roster only to tight end Rob Gronkowski, who barely topped Cooks in all three categories.

Cooks' clear chemistry with Brady makes the trade fairly surprising for New England, particularly after the recent departure of another favorite Brady target, Danny Amendola, who signed with the Dolphins.

But the defending NFC West champion Rams made an aggressive offer to secure a potential No. 1 receiver and proven deep threat just three weeks after the departure of Sammy Watkins, who got a three-year, $48 million deal from the Kansas City Chiefs in free agency.

After weeks of rumors about the Rams' interest in acquiring star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. from the New York Giants, they managed to find another elite talent at the position. Cooks' speed and versatility should fit in well in coach Sean McVay's schemes as he lines up alongside Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp in the NFL's highest-scoring offense last season.

The trade also appears to be a strategic move on the part of the Patriots: Cooks is entering the fifth year of his rookie contract, and he can become a free agent after the 2018 season.

With three 1 Dan Skuta Jersey ,000-yard seasons in a four-year pro career that began with New Orleans, Cooks would likely be a coveted player after another big year, and the Patriots may not have been willing to pay a high price to keep him and may be looking to get maximum value now.

Watkins was in the same contractual situation when the Rams acquired him from Buffalo during training camp last year, and he parlayed a solid season in Los Angeles into an enormous contract elsewhere. Yet the Rams don't appear to regret the trade, even though Watkins was their fourth-leading receiver with 39 catches, because he excelled in the red zone with eight TD grabs and provided a deep threat that had to be respected by opponents.

Cooks will be asked to do all that and more with the Rams, who haven't let up on their intense offseason pursuit of a championship roster.

The Rams acquired elite cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib last month, and they signed defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh last week to form a ferocious duo with AP Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald. Los Angeles has lost leading tackler Alec Ogletree and top cornerback Trumaine Johnson during its machinations, yet kept its entire offensive line intact for Goff and running back Todd Gurley.

With the draft picks acquired in Tuesday's deal, New England now holds four picks in the first two rounds later this month and four more picks in Rounds 3-7. That gives coach Bill Belichick the ability to go shopping for a young prospect or perhaps to make a deal for a veteran.

Still, there's also the possibility that the Patriots may do nothing at all at receiver heading into training camp.

Julian Edelman is expected to return after suffering a preseason knee injury, and Malcolm Mitchell is also slated to return after spending time on injured reserve with a knee issue.

Cooks was New Orleans' first-round selection out of Oregon State in 2014 D'Onta Foreman Jersey , and he played three solid seasons for the Saints while emerging as a top young receiver.

Yet when the competitive receiver apparently disagreed with the Saints about the height of his abilities and his long-term future, he was traded to New England 13 months ago for a first-rounder and other picks.

Although Cooks is one year away from free agency, the Rams probably feel they've got a better chance to do a long-term deal with Cooks. Cooks and Goff are represented by the same agent, and Cooks is a Stockton, California, native whose family will be able to see him play regularly.

AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham in Los Angeles contributed to this story. Signs posted around the Olympic venues urge extreme caution. Nine hundred troops stream into the area to help. Worried organizers sequester 1,200 people in their rooms.

Officials are scrambling on the eve of the biggest planned event in South Korea in years ¨C not because of anything related to North Korea and national security, but in an attempt to arrest the spread of norovirus at the Pyeongchang Games.

Local media are fretting over a ¡±virus panic.¡± South Koreans, always quick to air their views online, have poured scorn on the government¡¯s response and preparations. Are the games hygienic? What will people think about South Korea? Could this spread to the athletes?

Norovirus fears may turn out to be much ado about nothing. But with a national reputation on the line, officials are scrambling to contain its spread. No one here wants these games associated more with disease than athletics in the manner that Zika, a mosquito-borne disease linked to a rare birth defect Glover Quin Jersey , loomed over the Rio Olympics in 2016.

According to Olympics organizers, the norovirus spread began Sunday when private security workers staying in the Jinbu area of Pyeongchang started complaining of headaches, stomach pain and diarrhea.

NFL

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ¨C Josh McDaniels has backed out of a deal to become the Indianapolis¡¯ Colts new coach, a decision that shocked the franchise hours after it announced his hiring.

The Colts confirmed McDaniels¡¯ decision in a statement Tuesday night after reports emerged that the Patriots¡¯ offensive coordinator had opted to stay in New England with coach Bill Belichick.

McDaniels had agreed to contract terms with the Colts to replace the fired Chuck Pagano. A news conference had been scheduled for Wednesday at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Colts said McDaniels informed them Tuesday evening that he would not sign the deal.

¡±Although we are surprised and disappointed, we will resume our head coaching search immediately and find the right fit to lead our team and organization on and off the field,¡± the Colts said in the statement.

The Patriots and McDaniels¡¯ agent, Bob LaMont, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

By spurning the Colts after they waited 22 days to hire him, McDaniels leaves the reeling franchise as the only one without a coach. New England defensive coordinator Matt Patricia left Belichick¡¯s staff a day after the Patriots¡¯ Super Bowl loss to become coach of the Detroit Lions.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) ¨C New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski can be heard on a 911 call calmly telling a dispatcher that his home was burglarized while he was at the Super Bowl.

Police in Foxborough, Massachusetts, released a portion of the call on Tuesday.

He can be heard telling the dispatcher on Monday: ¡±This is Rob Gronkowski calling Nevin Lawson Jersey , and while I was gone my whole house got robbed, while on the Super Bowl trip. And I just got back.¡±

A police report says someone broke a window to get in. In a Broadcastify.com recording of a call between responding officers and dispatch, a dispatcher says ¡±multiple safes and possible guns¡± were taken.

The police report redacted all details of what was taken.

The report says Gronkowski lives with two roommates, both of whom reported items stolen.

BASKETBALL

NEW YORK (AP) ¨C Knicks All-Star Kristaps Porzingis has torn the ACL in his left knee.

Porzingis was hurt in the second quarter of New York¡¯s loss to Milwaukee on Tuesday night. He dunked with 8:46 left in the half and landed awkwardly, crashing to the court and holding his left knee. He was eventually helped up and taken to the locker room.

He left the arena for an MRI exam that revealed the injury. Porzingis had scored 10 points before he was hurt. He was selected last month for his first All-Star appearance.

NEW YORK (AP) ¨C The Los Angeles Lakers have been fined $50,000 for violating the NBA¡¯s tampering rule again.

League officials made the announcement Tuesday in response to an interview team president Earvin ¡±Magic¡± Johnson did with ESPN.

Johnson was discussing the skills of Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo and said the Greek native would put the Bucks ¡±on the map¡± and bring them an NBA title.

It¡¯s the third time in less than 12 months the Lakers have been disciplined for tampering.

The team was fined $500,000 last summer after the league found general manager Rob Pelinka had been communicating with Paul George¡¯s agent while George was with the Indiana Pacers. Previously, the NBA issued a warning to the team after Johnson winked at George during a television interview.

WNBA

NEW YORK (AP) ¨C The New York Liberty are remaining under the control of New York Knicks owner James Dolan and Madison Square Garden for now.

The WNBA team was put up for sale in November. An MSG executive confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday that Dolan¡¯s group has decided to keep the Liberty at this time.

New York will move most of its games out of the Garden this season and into an arena in suburban Westchester County, two people familiar with the situation told the AP. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement has been made.

The Liberty were one of the WNBA¡¯s original franchises and have been owned by Dolan and Madison Square Garden since the league was founded in 1996.

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