The Cleveland Browns needed a boost at wide receiver after Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry left the squad.
Beckham cleared waivers to join the Los Angeles Rams and won Super Bowl LVI.
Meanwhile, Landry signed a one-year deal with the New Orleans Saints after playing four seasons in Cleveland.
However, the Browns can still have a potent passing game with Amari Cooper as one of their wideouts.
Here is the four-time Pro Bowler wearing the Browns uniform for the first time.
Amari Cooper for the first time in the full @Browns threads. pic.twitter.com/fCbCzwLjC8
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) June 30, 2022
Cooper was traded by the Dallas Cowboys to the Browns in exchange for a fifth-round pick and an exchange of sixth-rounders in the 2022 NFL Draft.
While he had solid numbers of 865 yards and eight touchdowns last season, it’s not near his peak of 1,189 yards in 2019.
There are speculations that his shaky relationship with Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott led to the down year.
But clearing cap space is the foremost reason for the transaction.
With Cooper now with the Browns, the Cowboys were able to remove his five-year, $100 million contract off their books.
The former Alabama standout has three years left on that deal and he is set to earn a base salary of $1.12 million in 2022.
Browns Not Afraid To Spend This Offseason
Aside from absorbing Cooper’s contract, the Browns also gave a four-year, $54.7 million deal to tight end David Njoku.
They also agreed to a five-year, $100.5 million deal with cornerback Denzel Ward.
Finally, the Browns signed Deshaun Watson to a five-year, $230 million fully-guaranteed deal.
It remains to be seen whether Cooper will get to play with Watson in the upcoming season because former federal judge Sue Robinson is yet to give a recommendation regarding Watson’s potential suspension.
If the Pro Bowl play-caller is cleared to suit up, Cleveland will have an explosive quarterback-wide receiver tandem.
NEXT: 3 Browns Players Who Need To Step Up If Watson Is Suspended
