The Dallas Cowboys were struggling and in desperate need of a spark around midseason in 2018. Quarterback Dak Prescott had been deprived of having a reliable number one option at receiver during his first two seasons. With their record at 3-4, the Cowboys wouldn’t waste any more time getting their franchise signal-caller a new toy to play with.
The Cowboys acquired Wide Receiver Amari Cooper from the Oakland Raiders for a 2019 first-round pick. At first, the price to get him seemed a little steep to most. However, Cooper wasted little time showing the Cowboys organization that they made a very wise decision bringing him in.
By the end of the season, Cooper amassed 53 receptions for 725 yards and six touchdowns in just nine games with the Cowboys. That brought on high expectations for Cooper coming into 2019, and he’s lived up to it.
Currently, he has 64 receptions for 971 yards (fifth in the NFL) and seven touchdowns (tied for third). I guess it’s safe to say that by the end of this Thursday’s game vs the Chicago Bears he’ll be over 1,000 for the season. He would already be over that mark, though, if not for a few nagging injuries that forced him to miss time during a few games.
Cooper is set to make just under 14 million this season and will be an unrestricted free agent in 2020. Contract talks between the Cowboys and Cooper’s team for a long term deal have slowed down recently, however, the star receiver is focused on finishing 2019 before focusing on his contract situation.
“I haven’t really thought about that,” Cooper said Monday. “I’m not going to put the cart before the horse. We’re still in the season. I haven’t given much thought to it.”
Even though Cooper isn’t currently concerned about a new deal he’s made it known that Dallas is the place he wants to be.
“I’ve approached the situation like if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” Cooper said. “Obviously, I’m more productive here than I was in Oakland, so why would I want to change things?”
Playing on a new field in a different city certainly has been good for Cooper. In 11 games at AT&T Stadium, he has 82 receptions for 1,309 yards and 11 touchdowns. That’s an average of seven receptions for 119 yards and a touchdown per game at home. That would make any receiver want to stay right? Cooper agrees.
“I’ve enjoyed it a lot,” Cooper said about being in Dallas. “It’s cool. A reporter talked about my numbers at home. It just feels good to play here, to live here. I’m happy. I love it here. I want to be here. I just love this situation, my teammates. I just feel it’s the place for me.”
You can rest assured the Cowboys aren’t foolish enough to let a receiver as dynamic and explosive as Cooper leave the building when free agency begins in March. Players like him simply don’t walk into your facility every day. He’s earned the respect of his teammates and has developed quite the following in the Cowboys fan base. The front office will do whatever they can to bring Cooper back and keep the combination of himself, Dak Prescott, and Ezekiel Elliott together for a long time.
