The 1-5 Cleveland Browns shook things up this week after another embarrassing loss in Week 6 and decided to ship No. 1 wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Buffalo Bills.
Cooper’s name had been floated in trade rumors for weeks, but the timing of the deal was sudden and unexpected and the Bills’ general manager recently revealed more details on what went on behind the scenes that led to this getting done.
Bills general manager Brandon Beane appeared on The Pat McAfee Show Wednesday and said “We had been having conversations quietly with a couple teams just seeing where they were at.” and added that they talked to the Browns on Sunday night before things picked up quickly on Tuesday morning.
HUGE move yesterday getting Amari Cooper
"We had been having conversations quietly with a couple teams just seeing where they were at..
We talked to the Browns again on Sunday night & things got hot & heavy yesterday morning"
Brandon Beane #PMSLive #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/RwaESCq5lf
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 16, 2024
The Browns losing to the Philadelphia Eagles to drop to 1-5 while the Buffalo Bills barely defeated the New York Jets on Monday Night Football surely added a sense of urgency on both sides, as each team is headed in a different direction.
It made little sense to keep Cooper, as he is on an expiring contract and has caught just 24 of his 53 targets so far.
Cleveland will now see what Jerry Jeudy can do as the No. 1 receiver and Elijah Moore will likely step into the No. 2 role.
Cooper’s absence could open up more opportunities for other young players such as Cedric Tillman or rookie Jamari Thrash, both of who were buried on the depth chart prior to the trade.
This trade made plenty of sense for both parties, and we’ll see what kind of impact it has on the Browns’ lifeless offense.
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