On the field against the Buccaneers on Sunday night, the Dallas Cowboys won’t have a familiar face. Amari Cooper, a seasoned receiver who was dealt this offseason by a Cowboys team that sorely needed to free up contract space, will suit up for the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
Dallas already had Ezekiel Elliott’s astronomical deal, but the Cowboys had enough depth at wide out to absorb the talent loss. The targets for the Cowboys can be carried by CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup (after the latter is healed). However, Cooper will be missed.
Despite Deshaun Watson’s 11-game suspension, Cooper naturally joins a Cleveland squad with high expectations for the upcoming 2022 season. Donovan Peoples-Jones and he have established themselves as the main targets for Jacoby Brissett in the Cleveland locker room.
The Cowboys will surely benefit from Dak Prescott’s familiarity with the team to which he will be passing the ball this season. In contrast, Lamb has a free agent status following the 2024 season.
How did Amari Cooper fare?
Cap casualty, in two words. In 2020, Cooper committed to the Cowboys for a five-year, $100 million deal, which the franchise didn’t feel comfortable keeping on the books.
Cooper’s trade cost the Cowboys $6 million in salary space, as opposed to keeping him at a $22 million cost. With contracts like Elliott’s ($18.22 million in 2022), DeMarcus Lawrence’s ($14 million), Zack Martin’s ($12 million), and Dalton Schultz’s ($10.9 million), the Cowboys were already in a precarious position.
While not negatively impacting the Cowboys’ position as much as trying to move on from one of those other players, cutting Cooper go saved them money.
Although the loss is significant—Cooler had over 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first two seasons with the Cowboys and might have reached that mark in 2021 with COVID-19—Lamb and Gallup can actually fill the void.
For what was Amari Cooper exchanged?
The Cowboys acquired a fifth-round pick and a sixth-round swap in 2022 as compensation for sending Cooper to the Browns. The Cowboys selected LB Devin Harper and OT Matt Waletzko with those picks.
What is the WR depth chart for the Cowboys?
The Cowboys still have a lot of wide receiver talent. Gallup’s ceiling is No. 1 for many teams, and Lamb is at the top of the depth chart when he’s healthy. With youngster Jalen Tolbert starting in the slot, the area underneath them thins up considerably.
There’s no disputing the drop-off may be severe, but given how well rookie receivers have done in recent years, perhaps Tolbert or Houston will enjoy early success.
As Cooper navigates Cleveland, it will surely be fascinating to watch. It takes a very special combination of circumstances for a receiver as brilliant as Cooper to be traded twice. Maybe the Browns will be his long-term home.
Amari Cooper should on the field against the Jets in Week 2
According to Scott Petrak, the wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns, Amari Cooper, did not work out on Wednesday. Cooper was listed as having an injury prior to practise, but Petrak has not yet received a response. Cooper didn’t seem to be hurt during Week 1.
Cooper was acquired by the Browns through a trade this offseason, and despite only catching 3-of-6 targets for 17 yards in Week 1, he showed well. Unfortunately, Jacoby Brissett had some terrible throws while he was driving the Panthers’ young cornerbacks to school. He’ll do better in games.
Fantasy football implications
Donovan Peoples-Jones would be the game’s safest receiver if Cooper were to end up missing this week’s action. Against the Panthers, DPJ saw 11 targets and was successful in catching 6 of them for 60 yards. In a strong game coming Sunday against the Jets, it would be worthwhile to deploy Cooper or DPJ. A streaming tight end alternative would be TE David Njoku.
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