Amari Cooper is back with the team that drafted him after being signed to a one-year deal with the Raiders. He played for the then Oakland Raiders from 2015-2018 before being traded to the Dallas Cowboys, where he remained for the following four seasons.
He played for both the Browns and Bills in 2024, finishing the season with 547 total receiving yards and four touchdowns in 14 games played. He recorded career lows in targets, receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
It was a nightmare season for the 31-year-old, but I have a feeling that there is still some tread on the tires. Cooper showed flashes at times during the 2024 season.
With uncertainty surrounding the future of Jakobi Meyers, this feels like a great fit for Cooper to get his career back on track. Meyers could still be around to feature as the WR1 in this offense, but after putting in a trade request, his future is up in the air to say the least.
Outside of Meyers, when you look around this receiver room, the Raiders are quite thin. Tre Tucker and rookie Dont’e Thornton Jr. are the most notable names outside of Meyers, so the pathway to playing time for Cooper is clear. If Meyers leaves, then we can start talking about Cooper potentially becoming the WR1 on this team. For now, he’s likely looking at a WR2 or WR3 position on this team.
Despite a tough 2024, this is still the same guy who put up 1,000+ receiving yards in both 2022 and 2023 with Cleveland. A short offseason with the team won’t help Cooper, but as a veteran who’s played in plenty of offenses, he still should have enough time to get up to speed and learn the playbook before Week 1.
Depending on how this receiver room shakes out in Vegas, Cooper could be a late-round gem in fantasy football drafts.
