Amari Cooper attended the University of Alabama and while he was there, he was the recipient of the Biletnikoff Award which is awarded to the top wide receiver in college football. Amari was also q unanimous All-American in 2014. When he entered his name for the NFL Draft in 2015, he was widely regarded as the best wide receiver prospect in the draft. The Raiders selected him fourth overall that year. Amari had successful rookie and sophomore stints with the Raiders. In his third year, I noticed he was struggling. In 2018 midway through the year, the Raiders traded him to the Dallas Cowboys where he emerged as the number one receiver. The talks of Amari being moved had intensified during the 2021 season. Today, he’s been traded to the Cleveland Browns for a fifth and sixth-round draft pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
I don’t think his game gets talked about enough in my opinion. Amari is a gifted wide receiver that makes all his routes look the same because he runs them with consistency. What stands out to me most about his game is the ability to change direction. He’s another one of the best route runners in this game. Amari celebrates so quickly out of his release off the line of scrimmage. He has excellent footwork and body movement to separate himself from defensive backs. Amari plays with an improvisational mentality meaning he can adjust on the fly so he can get the ball thrown in his direction. You can lob the ball up and he’ll come away with it somehow, someway. With the football in his hands, he’s electric after the catch because he can get himself up the field and add those additional yards after the catch. It’s also the body control that he displays. Amari knows how to position himself to stay in bounds. He has no issues with showing a little toe drag swag (big ups to Nate Burleson). If you don’t lock in on him, he’ll make you pay for it.
I had a feeling this was coming. This made sense for the Cowboys and I say that because CeeDee Lamb made Amari expendable. They drafted him intending to groom him to be the number one receiver. I can’t wait to see how this works out in Cleveland. The only question mark is the quarterback. Baker Mayfield can’t be trusted.
