Eagles, Jets, Others Pursued Amari Cooper
The Cowboys did not wait for trade deadline week to make their move, unloading a first-round pick to land Amari Cooper from the Raiders. They look to have fought off several others to acquire the fourth-year wide receiver.
Reggie McKenzie said (via Vic Tafur of The Athletic, on Twitter) he spurned initial offers, but that five teams upped their offerings until the Cowboys parted with their next first-round selection. Teams were contacting the Raiders about Cooper as early as the offseason and continued to do so during the season’s opening weeks before recent media reports accelerated the process, McKenzie said (via NBC Sports Bay Area’s Scott Bair and the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Michael Gehlken, Twitter links).
One team that was in the thick of the pursuit: the Eagles. The defending Super Bowl champions were interested in Cooper, but Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (video link) other suitors ended up being scared off by the Raiders’ first-round demand. The Cowboys’ initial offer didn’t satisfy the Raiders, either, and they weren’t the first team to ask about Cooper. But executive VP Stephen Jones called McKenzie with the first-round offer and completed the deal Monday morning.
The Jets were involved as well, with Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweeting Gang Green had some interest in a player current team brass loved coming out of the draft in 2015. Just as in the case of Khalil Mack, though, the Jets chose not to part with the kind of draft compensation a trade ultimately required. It’s unclear, however, if the Jets made an offer, per Cimini.
Both the Redskins and Colts were rumored to be interested as well. The Jets are banged up at wide receiver and don’t have much in the way of long-term options at that spot. The Eagles just paid up for Alshon Jeffery and have Nelson Agholor on the books for 2019 via fifth-year option. Cooper now stands to be on the Cowboys’ 2019 payroll via $13MM-plus fifth-year option.
Cowboys To Cut Brice Butler
Brice Butler‘s latest Cowboys stint will end as a result of the franchise’s Amari Cooper acquisition. The Cowboys informed Butler they intend to release him, Jane Slater of NFL.com tweets.
The veteran wide receiver rejoined the Cowboys this year after a Cardinals signing did not work out. He played in one game thus far this season and did not catch a pass.
The well-traveled pass-catcher averaged 21.1 yards per catch last season and parlayed that work into a two-year Arizona deal. He did not end up making the Cardinals’ 53-man roster, though, and returned to the Cowboys as roster depth for a shaky receiving corps.
Having begun his career with the Raiders as a seventh-round pick, Reggie McKenzie traded Butler to the Cowboys prior to the 2015 season. He played three seasons in Dallas.
Cowboys To Acquire Amari Cooper
The Cowboys and Raiders have reached an agreement on Amari Cooper, with ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson reporting (via Twitter) the fourth-year wide receiver will head to Dallas. Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets this transaction is indeed happening.
The compensation is big. Dallas will send a first-round pick to Oakland for Cooper, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). It’s a 2019 pick, per SI.com’s Albert Breer (on Twitter). The Oakland/Las Vegas rebuild is in high gear, with the franchise now holding three first-rounders in next year’s draft.
Oakland received an offer for a pick expected to be in the high second-round range, per La Canfora (on Twitter), and turned it down, to the surprise of many around the league. But Gruden has recouped a first-round pick for a wideout whose value doesn’t appear to be what it once was.
While this marks another Reggie McKenzie first-rounder dealt, Breer tweets the Raiders GM handled the trade calls for Cooper and was holding teams to a first-round pick for the 24-year-old receiver’s services. The now-Jon Gruden-led Raiders have traded both of McKenzie’s top first-round acquisitions — Cooper and Khalil Mack — in a two-months span.
Cooper was at Raiders practice earlier on Monday, per ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez (on Twitter), but has been the subject of trade rumors for several days now. The Cowboys are swooping in, doing so after their record dipped below .500 after a Week 7 loss to the Redskins.
While Cooper has not shown the consistency he displayed during his first two seasons — both Pro Bowl campaigns — the Raiders wanted a first-round pick for him and will receive it. The Colts and Redskins were also rumored Cooper suitors, but he’ll head to a team with a dire need at wide receiver. Cooper is signed through the 2019 season, with the Raiders having picked up the 2015 No. 5 overall pick’s $13.924MM fifth-year option.
The return is surprising given Cooper’s performance over the past two years.
He has one catch in Oakland’s past two games and has finished four of the Raiders’ six 2018 contests with two or fewer receptions. After he posted a career-best 1,153 receiving yards in 2016, the Alabama product’s 2017 total (680 yards on 48 receptions in 14 games) was a considerable disappointment.
But Cooper will step in and be a key player for a Cowboys team that cut Dez Bryant this offseason but did not, until Monday, make a big move to replace him. Third-round pick Michael Gallup and UFA addition Allen Hurns represented Jerry Jones‘ Bryant-replacement efforts. Cooper will join a receiving corps currently fronted by slot man Cole Beasley. Only Beasley and tight end Geoff Swaim have more than 200 receiving yards for Dallas. Hurns has only caught 13 passes for 158 yards, and Terrance Williams is on IR.
Cooper’s season will now have back-to-back bye weeks, and he’ll have two weeks before debuting as a Cowboy. Dallas faces Tennessee in Week 9.
While the Cowboys have shown intermittent promise this season and play in an NFC East that’s seen the favored Eagles stumble to start their title defense, a 3-4 team trading a first-round pick represents massive risk. The pick Dallas is sending to Oakland could be in the top half of next year’s first round. With the Raiders’ own first-rounder in contention for No. 1 overall in 2019, they will have prime real estate to bring in potential cornerstones for their Vegas start.
Cowboys Searching For Safeties Via Trade
The Cowboys are monitoring potential trade targets at receiver such as Amari Cooper, Kelvin Benjamin, and DeVante Parker, but they’re also looking at improvements on the defensive side of the ball. Dallas is interested in acquiring a safety via trade, per Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (Twitter link), who notes that such an addition would likely be a move for depth.
Dallas has deployed Jeff Heath and Xavier Woods as their starting safeties over the past four games. Kavon Frazier, meanwhile, started the club’s first two games while Woods was injured, but has barely played since. The Cowboys also recently signed former Giants starter Darian Thompson off the Cardinals’ practice squad.
All three of the Heath, Woods, and Frazier rank as bottom-12 defensive backs league-wide, per Pro Football Focus, and ranks just 23rd in pass defense DVOA , so a trade for a starer can’t be ruled out. Dallas, of course, discussed acquiring All-Pro Earl Thomas from the Seahawks before he went down with a season-ending injury.
Speculatively, safeties that could be available for trade include T.J. McDonald (Dolphins), Briean Boddy-Calhoun (Browns), Tre Boston (Cardinals), Antoine Bethea (Cardinals), and Kurt Coleman (Saints).
Cowboys Monitoring Amari Cooper, DeVante Parker, Kelvin Benjamin
- Raiders receiver Amari Cooper is clearly available via trade, and Rapoport says that the team has had the most significant discussions about Cooper with NFC East clubs, including the Cowboys. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com confirms that Dallas is doing its due diligence on Cooper, and Albert Breer of TheMMQB thinks there would be teams willing to part with a second-round choice for him, though it does not seem likely that Oakland will get the first-rounder it is reportedly seeking. Breer reports that the team wants a third-round pick in exchange for safety Karl Joseph.
- In addition to Cooper, the Cowboys are monitoring Dolphins WR DeVante Parker and Bills WR Kelvin Benjamin, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The Eagles have also spoken to Miami about Parker, according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (via Twitter).
Sean Lee To Return In Different Role
- The Cowboys will have the services of Sean Lee on Sunday against the Redskins. Lee is not on Dallas’ injury report for its game against Washington. He missed the past three games because of a hamstring strain, opening the door for first-round pick Leighton Vander Esch to log plenty of playing time. Vander Esch responded and enters Week 7 as Pro Football Focus’ No. 2 overall linebacker. Lee, Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith will split time in Dallas’ nickel package, Todd Archer of ESPN.com notes.
Cowboys Not Looking For Receiver Help
- While Dallas’ lack of pass-catchers has been one of the biggest storylines in the NFL this year, it doesn’t sound like the Cowboys will be adding outside receiving help anytime soon. Owner Jerry Jones downplayed speculation they’d go after a veteran receiver, saying it’s “hard to do at this juncture, to bring in a position that needs the coordination that you have to have with the quarterback” and adding that “the farther you go into the year, then the harder it is to think about bringing a player in”, per Jon Machota of Dallas News. While Jones insisted the organization is “confident in the personnel that we have here”, it still wouldn’t be surprising if they were ultimately aggressive in the trade market.
Cowboys WR Terrance Williams Suspended
The NFL has suspended Cowboys receiver Terrance Williams for three games, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Williams is currently on injured reserve, but he can serve the ban while on IR.
Williams was arrested in May after allegedly crashing his vehicle into a light pole, but he was never charged with driving under the influence. Instead, Williams faced a misdemeanor charge of public intoxication, a violation which was dismissed after Williams completed an alcohol awareness course and paid for damages, but the NFL still holds the right to issue its own response.
While Williams won’t have to miss any time as a result of his suspension given that he’s already out for the season, he will miss out on cash. He’ll be forced to sacrifice 3/17 of his base salary, which amounts to about $618K. All Cowboys players have contract language that voids their guarantees in the event of a suspension, but Williams doesn’t have any more guaranteed money on his deal after 2018.
In other Cowboys news, Dallas isn’t currently involved in the wide receiver trade market, tweets Josina Anderson of ESPN.com. Several pass-catchers, notably including Raiders wideout Amari Cooper, are reportedly on the trade block, but the Cowboys are comfortable with their current depth chart of Cole Beasley, Michael Gallup, Allen Hurns, Deonte Thompson, and Tavon Austin.
Tavon Austin Getting Second Opinion
- Tavon Austin is getting a second opinion on his groin injury in the near future, and the Cowboys will wait to hear that diagnosis before deciding on an injured reserve move, tweets Clarence Hill of the Star Telegram. Austin, who Dallas acquired from the Rams earlier this year, has lined up at both receiver and running back this season, managing seven receptions and six rushes on the year. If Austin is placed on IR, the Cowboys will continue to lean on an uninspiring group of pass-catchers that includes Allen Hurns, Michael Gallup, Cole Beasley, and Deonte Thompson. Dallas would need to find a new punt returner, as Austin has handled all but one of the club’s punt returns.
Cowboys Haven’t Considered Extension For Jason Garrett
The Cowboys haven’t pondered an extension for head coach Jason Garrett, owner Jerry Jones says (Twitter link via Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News). Jones’ comments caused a stir, particularly with speculation about Garrett’s job security, but it’s not necessarily huge news since Garrett is already signed through the 2019 season. 
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Frankly, it would be shocking if the 3-3 Cowboys approached Garrett about a new contract with 26 regular season games to go on his deal. Garrett has had some successful campaigns in Dallas, but the Cowboys missed the playoffs last season and have just one playoff victory in his past seven full years at the helm.
After a disappointing overtime loss to the Texans, the Cowboys bounced back on Sunday with a 40-7 blowout of the Jaguars. With a win over the Redskins in D.C. this weekend, the Cowboys can move past the .500 mark for the first time in 2018. And, if the Cowboys continue to win, Garrett could have an extension offer early next year.