According to multiple sources, the Dallas Cowboys are finalizing a trade deal that will send wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for several late-round draft picks.
Rumors have swirled since the conclusion of the 2021 season that Cooper would be released or traded in order to meet salary cap levels. The trade will release the Cowboys from having to pay more than $20 million owed to Cooper for the 2022 season.
Cooper came to the Cowboys in 2018 in a trade with the Raiders, who were playing in Oakland at the time. Dallas gave up a first-round draft pick to make the deal happen, but will get only a fifth-round selection in exchange for Cooper in 2022. The trade is rumored to also include an exchange of sixth-round positioning between the Browns and Cowboys.
Cooper’s receiving yards total from 2021 was down from previous seasons at a mere 867 yards; however, the skilled route runner tied his career-best number for touchdowns at eight. In four seasons with the Cowboys, Cooper recorded 292 receptions for 3,893 yards and 27 touchdowns.
The emergence of CeeDee Lamb as the number one receiver and a difficult cap situation made the decision to part ways with Cooper a foregone conclusion by the end of the 2021 season.
Cooper will join a Browns organization that is in desperate need of answers at the receiving position. Cleveland traded Odell Beckham Jr. to the Los Angeles Rams last season, leaving Jarvis Landry as the top receiver on the roster. Landry had only 52 receptions for a meager 570 yards in 2021. The Browns gave permission on March 14 to allow the receiver to seek a trade.
The Cowboys have one of the NFL’s worst cap situations and entered the offseason with more than 20 players heading to free agency, including receiver Michael Gallup, whom the team is reportedly working on a contract to retain. Gallup had flashes of excellence throughout an injury-marred season, which was ended by an ACL tear suffered in Week 17 while making a spectacular touchdown grab.
Gallup’s offer is expected to be a five-year deal worth a reported $62.5 million. The Cowboys have also exercised a franchise tag on tight end Dalton Schultz and have released Blake Jarwin, who also struggled with injuries last season and ended the campaign on IR with a hip injury that required offseason surgery.
Dallas still has many massive question marks on defense, with several of its Pro Bowl-caliber players in free agency seeking new contracts this offseason, including Randy Gregory, Dorance Armstrong, Leighton Vander Esch, Jayron Kearse, and DeMarcus Lawrence.
It is unlikely that the Cowboys will retain most of their top defensive talent this season. Rumors are that the team intends to sign Lawrence, while several others are likely to be wearing a different uniform when the 2022 season begins.
The 2022 league year officially begins on March 16, and teams will begin to make moves for players who are unrestricted free agents on that day at 4 p.m. Eastern Time. Teams were allowed to talk to players and negotiate contracts as of March 14 until the start of the new league year.
