With a trade with the Dallas Cowboys, the Cleveland Browns acquired their final elite wide receiver, and general manager Andrew Berry may have made it two for two in his interactions with flamboyant owner Jerry Jones.
Recently, Deshaun Watson used the radio to court Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, a pending free agency who plays for the AFC North Division rival team. A trade that would help the Cowboys clear some cash off their books sounds more realistic, even though that plan has little chance of success and might depend on the quarterback agreeing to a pay cut.
On Monday, January 29, the NFL Scouting Department of Bleacher Report released an offseason trade advisory for both Cleveland and Dallas. In it, they mentioned wide receiver Brandin Cooks as possibly the Cowboys’ best trade asset and one of the Browns’ best trade targets. In addition, that trade would bring Watson and Cooks back together. They had a very successful season together in 2020 when playing together for the Houston Texans.
By dealing away the veteran, the Cowboys would save $4 million against the cap, and they already paid a small draft price for him in the previous summer.
When Cooks had Deshaun Watson throw him the ball in 2020, he did some of his best work while he was in Houston. The Browns are now in a desperate attempt to ensure that Watson lives up to the compensation and trade package they forfeited for him. Reuniting the two should be taken into consideration if it will solve the problem.
With BR’s proposal, Cooks is traded to the Browns for two 2024 (No. 134 overall) and 2025 fifth-round selections.
By moving Cooks after June 1, Dallas could really save $8 million in 2024. If they wait until the summer to make the deal, they could save an additional $2 million in 2025.
Cleveland may wait for history to repeat itself, so there’s no need for the team to move quickly.
“BR wrote on Monday that the Dallas Cowboys need to create cap space and may try to do so by offloading one of their backup wide receivers.” “CeeDee Lamb now has the opportunity to compete for an extension after the Cowboys dealt Amari Cooper just two years ago to clear space in the starting lineup.”
The Browns were the ones that gained from Jones’ choice to trade Cooper. Berry acquired the top wide receiver on the club for just one fifth-round selection.
Since then, Cooper has led the Browns in receiving for two seasons in a row. According to Pro Football Reference, he was selected for the fifth time in his career for the Pro Bowl in 2023 after hauling in 72 passes for 1,250 yards and five touchdowns.
Paradoxically, BR also identified Cooper as one of the top trade targets for the Browns in the offseason of 2024. The wideout’s sole real source of expendability is the money he owes on his $100 million contract, which has a salary cap hit of little under $24 million the next season.
But Cooper has demonstrated that I
