If the Cleveland Browns continue to fall out of the playoff race in the coming weeks, the team will have an easy call to move star wide receiver Amari Cooper at the trade deadline.
Amari Cooper is in the final year of his contract and will be 31 years of age next year, so Cleveland GM Andrew Berry is better off getting something for the Pro Bowl wideout instead of losing him for nothing in free agency.
The Browns (1-3) look nothing like the team that qualified for the postseason a year ago with an 11-6 record despite using five different quarterbacks. The Deshaun Watson-led offense is averaging a woeful 16.5 points per game, and Jim Schwartz’s defense has regressed after leading the team to the postseason a year ago.
Watson’s terrible performance has affected Amari Cooper, who is currently averaging a career-low 37 receiving yards per game (148 yards in four games). So unless the Browns go on a hot streak leading up to the Nov. 5 trade deadline, Cooper is a safe bet to be traded.
The #Browns converted all but $1.21M of WR Amari Cooper’s 2024 salary into signing bonus, making him an extremely affordable trade candidate.
Now: $941,111
Deadline: $605,000— Spotrac (@spotrac) September 30, 2024
If there’s one Super Bowl hopeful who should be highly motivated to acquire Cooper, it’s the Buffalo Bills. They look like a bonafide contender through four weeks despite the lack of a true No. 1 receiver, having traded Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans in the offseason.
Amari Cooper is a seven-time 1,000-yard receiver who would immediately slot in as Josh Allen’s favorite target. Khalil Shakir leads the team with 230 yards through four games, but tight end Dalton Kincaid is a distant second with just 132 yards.
Adding Cooper to an offense led by Allen, Shakir, Kincaid and 1,000-yard running back James Cook just might be the move that finally helps Buffalo get by the Kansas City Chiefs — and to a Super Bowl championship.
What Bills Should Offer Browns For Amari Cooper
Bills general manager Brandon Beane shouldn’t be afraid to be aggressive in his offer for Cooper. Remember, Buffalo has two second-round picks (theirs and Houston’s via the Diggs trade).
So a fair price for Amari Cooper would be a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 fifth-round selection. This would be a nice return for Cleveland, who only had to give up a fifth-rounder and a swap of sixth-round picks in 2022 to acquire Cooper from the Dallas Cowboys.
