For some fans, Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper’s holdout from mandatory minicamp came as a surprise.
The 30-year-old receiver is in the last year of his current NFL contract, one that pays the veteran an average of $20 million per season over five years.
A recent report suggests that the two parties have met, and the Browns are uninterested in extending Cooper beyond the 2025 season – an impasse to get a new contract extension signed.
While some rumors have been making their way around the Internet that the Browns have an interest in trading Cooper, Browns GM Andrew Berry shot those whispers down in a recent interview on “The Insiders” program when he told the hosts the holdout had no bearing on how the team felt about their top wide receiver.
Trading Cooper would not be an easy task.
Foremost, as a 30-year-old, Cooper is less attractive to other teams as a primary receiver, a role he enjoys in Cleveland.
His trade value would be significantly less than his current value to the Browns, meaning the best Berry could hope to receive in a deal would be a third-round draft pick.
Losing a receiver as talented as Cooper for compensation the team receives the following year is a non-starter as Cleveland has aspirations of competing now.
The undeniable truth is that Cooper will be compensated accordingly – much like his counterparts at other teams have been paid during this offseason – and the wide receiver will receive a multi-year extension likely within the month.
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