Jared Cook disappointed with his first season in St. Louis

Jared Cook never came close to matching his Week 1 performance. He admits that he has more work to do in the offseason.

Dec 7, 2013, 5:49 PM UTC

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

St. Louis Rams tight end Jared Cook expressed disappointment with his first season with the Rams. Despite being on pace to set new career highs in catches, yards and touchdowns, Cook hasn't been the consistent playmaker most people expected out of him. He admitted as much to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

“Some games just got away,” he said. “Some games you feel like you could’ve played better. A lot of times there’s nothing you can do about it. You’ve just got to keep playing and keep pushing forward.”
“That doesn’t make me satisfied at all,” he said. “I just have to improve in the areas of my play because I feel like I can help this team some more.”

The Rams signed Cook to a five-year, $35.1 million deal in the offseason. He stormed out of the gates in Week 1, grabbing seven catches for 141 yards and two touchdowns. He never came close to matching that production the rest of the season, though. Cook caught only two touchdowns over the next 11 games and never got more than 80 yards again.

Cook admitted that he had a hard time adjusting to teams focusing on him in their game plans, getting chipped by linebackers at the line and struggling to hold on to catches. The quarterback situation didn't help matters — Sam Bradford tore his ACL in Week 8, and Kellen Clemens is replacing him for the rest of the year.

The Rams face the Cardinals on Sunday, their second game of the season. It's a good chance for Cook to bounce back — the Cardinals have struggled to cover tight ends all season and gave up three touchdowns to the Eagles' tight ends last week.