If Amari Cooper soon becomes be a cap casualty of the Cowboys, as is expected, the veteran wide receiver could be in for an attractive landing spot.
The Patriots are among the teams that would have “great interest” in signing Cooper, according to Boardroom’s Jordan Schultz, who also added the Dolphins in that category.
Bill Belichick and Co. are sorting out their own issues with cap space, but landing Cooper would give second-year quarterback Mac Jones a true top receiver.
“I think this has New England Patriots written all over it because they really need someone who has No. 1 wide receiver capability in the form of Amari Cooper,” ESPN NFL analyst Louis Riddick said Sunday on “SportsCenter.”
Cooper playing against the Broncos on Nov. 7, 2021 Getty ImagesThe Patriots have also shown interest in ex-Jet and current Panthers receiver Robby Anderson, according to Boston Sports Journal and The Athletic. Anderson still has two years left on his contract after signing a $29.5 million extension last summer.
The 28-year-old Cooper, meanwhile, is a four-time Pro Bowler who is coming off a bit of a down year in Dallas. After back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons, the former Raider caught 68 passes for 865 yards and eight touchdowns last season.
“The issue with Amari is consistency,” Riddick said, per Boston.com. “This issue with Amari is getting him to do this over 17 games. That’s two teams now that have said, ‘Look, you’re good, but you’re just not worth the money we paid you that was really based on projecting you to be a guy who was a 90-, 100-catch guy per year.’ He just hasn’t really been able to really dial in and tap into his athletic ability and his football-playing ability at that level.
Amari Cooper is expected to be released by the Cowboys Getty Images“New England usually pulls it out of people in a way that many other people aren’t able to. Look, for Mac Jones, this would be the perfect kind of weapon he needs on the outside to go along with a very strong running game and one of the best receiving tight ends in Hunter Henry.”
The Patriots’ leading receiver in 2021 was Jakobi Meyers, who caught 83 passes for 866 yards and two touchdowns.
