The Browns Can’t Let Amari Cooper Situation Derail Season
Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
The Cleveland Browns got to the playoffs last year with defense, Joe Flacco, and duct tape holding them together. On paper at least, they have a formidable roster that should help them compete for the AFC North title, if not more. Still, things have to go right for the Browns if they want to take that next step, and even though things are taking a turn in Cleveland, no one is used to things consistently going right just yet.
So when Amari Cooper notably skipped the start of mandatory minicamps on Tuesday, that put a bit of a wobble in the Jenga tower Andrew Berry and Kevin Stafanski are trying to build.
Cooper, who enters his 30s in less than a week, is looking to get paid entering the last year of his contract. The 30s are a bit scary for any NFL team looking to commit to a player, but the 5-time Pro Bowler has a point. Cooper was the Browns’ No. 1 wideout last year, and it wasn’t even close. His 72 catches were second on the team to tight end David Njoku, and 13 ahead of Elijah Moore, the next-best wideout. Cooper’s 1,250 yards were nearly 400 more than Njoku (882) and almost doubled-up Moore as the No. 2 wide receiver (640).
Cooper also was able to find success regardless of what unknown or cast-off player started under center. Of Cooper’s 15 starts, five of them saw him pass the 100-yard barrier, and that includes games where his primary quarterbacks were Deshaun Watson, PJ Walker, and Flacco. Look at some of these performances!
Week 6 vs San Francisco: 4 receptions, 108 yards (Walker)
Week 15 vs Chicago: 4 receptions, 109 yards, 1 TDs (Flacco)
Week 16 @ Houston: 11 receptions, 265 yards, 2 TDs (Flacco)
Overall, the Browns went 5-0 in games where Cooper registered 100-plus yards, a big deal for a team that went 6-6 otherwise. The Browns needed Cooper to get over the hump last season, and this offseason didn’t change that calculus.
Yes, Berry and Stefanski addressed their needs at wide receiver somewhat, acquiring Jerry Jeudy from the Denver Broncos. The 2020 first-rounder has talent, but only has career-highs of 67 receptions, 972 yards, and 6 touchdowns through four seasons. Compare Jeudy’s 55.8 yards-per-game average over the past two seasons to Cooper’s (75.3 yards), and back-of-the-napkin math suggests Cleveland will lose about 20 yards per week if a prolonged Cooper holdout results in him missing time.
For this Browns team to make any noise, they’re going to have to build on their passing attack, which finished just 19th in the NFL with 217.2 yards per game and a woeful 31st in quarterback rating (73.7), per ESPN. That means there’s little room to mess around with Cooper’s situation, particularly since the team was unable to address the position until the fifth-round of the draft this year.
The Watson experiment is in a make-or-break year, and Cleveland is so committed to it that it has to be given every opportunity to work. The massive draft capital used to acquire him is gone forever, but the Browns at least need something to show for it to avoid it forever being a cloud over the Berry/Stefanski Era. That not only means going out to get Jeudy, or new offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, but it also means ensuring that Cooper is ready to hit the ground running on a new season.
Right now, the situation isn’t spilling over. “There’s been a dialogue,” Stefanski said Tuesday on Cooper’s situation. “We focus on guys that are here, we’ll get some good work in, and keep it at that.” The coach also emphasized that missing Cooper (and Jeudy, who has reported but is “working through some stuff”) to start minicamps won’t affect the team’s preparation for the season.
Stefanski needs to be right about that, and the brain trust needs to get Cooper back into the fold as soon as possible. The expectations are too high for the Browns to allow the season to go off the rails before it starts.
Up Next