Cleveland Browns: Don’t fall for Amari Cooper
The Cleveland Browns’ wide receiving corps has been pedestrian at best and dreadful at worst. But if the answer to helping Baker Mayfield does not lie in Amari Cooper.
The Cleveland Browns are not a finished product. Anyone who watches the Browns on a weekly basis can tell you that. They are certainly better than last season — don’t get that twisted — but there’s a lot of work to be done before they can hang with the NFL’s best.
The holes on Cleveland’s roster really shone through on Sunday in a 38-14 beatdown at the hands of the Los Angeles Chargers.
Despite an ankle injury to rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield, caused when he slipped on the first down marker, the rookie was still accurate on most of his passes. But his wide receiver corps, quite literally, dropped the ball. Antonio Callaway dropped one (maybe even two) touchdown passes. Damion Ratley dropped another. This receiving crew is one of, if not the worst in the entire NFL.
And yet, the Browns would not be getting any better by adding Oakland Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper, who is reportedly on the trade block according to a report from FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer. Get that idea out of your head right now, John Dorsey.
MUST READ: NFL picks, score predictions for Week 7
Not only would it be addition by subtraction, but it only adds to the very problem that the Browns are trying to remedy. The Browns already have enough receivers that drop passes, and despite Cooper’s “big name appeal,” he isn’t what Browns fans think he is.
It’s no secret that the Raiders will probably be having a fire sale this season. After starting 1-5, there have been trade rumors connected to everyone in the silver and black, from safety Karl Joseph to quarterback Derek Carr. The Browns need to stay away, and stay far away from any of these high-profile trades right now.
If they trade for Cooper, the Browns could lose a premium pick to spend on a game-breaking wide receiver who can actually catch passes from Mayfield 2019. The game against the Chargers showed that this team is still a year away, mostly because of the offensive line and receiving struggles.
Why should the Browns give up a great pick this year if they won’t be ready to truly compete until next year anyway?
Next. NFL Power Rankings, Week 7: Patriots, Cowboys rising. dark
Mayfield has superstar quarterback potential, but he has no help on the line or with his receivers. The Cleveland Browns are a year away from playoff contention, and if they were to trade for another receiver with a case of the drops, they might stay a year away. Don’t be fooled by the name Amari Cooper. At this stage, he will not help the Browns, but rather hinder them.