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Wide receiver Amari Cooper was traded from the Oakland Raiders to the Dallas Cowboys preceding Week 8 of the 2018 NFL season. Jason Katz analyzes the fantasy football impact of this trade to determine if Cooper is a WR on the rise or still overrated.
Historically, in-season trades for relevant players have been exceedingly rare in the NFL. That trend seems to be shifting in recent years. We just saw Carlos Hyde go to Jacksonville and on Monday the Dallas Cowboys made a bold move by giving up a first-round pick for wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Let me start out by reminding the fantastic readers that I am a Cowboys fan, but I am a realistic fan. This team is incompetent. The coach is incompetent. Jerry Jones is a great owner, but a horrible general manager. This move stinks of Jerry all over. In a year where the Cowboys probably aren't going anywhere and are currently positioned for a top-10 pick after a disappointing loss to division rival Washington, the team dumps its first rounder for a guy who is purely surviving on name and draft capital.
We all accept that Kevin White and Laquon Treadwell were awful first round picks, but we cling to Amari Cooper because of how great he was his first two years. And that's the thing about Cooper, we've seen it before so that means it's there, at least in theory. But will it be there in Big D?
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A Star Is Reborn?
Cooper instantly becomes the best WR on the Cowboys, which, admittedly, is a very low bar. If the Cowboys had a clue, Cooper would start in two-receiver sets alongside Michael Gallup with Cole Beasley in the slot. We'll see if that's what happens. What we know for sure is that after back-to-back bye weeks for Cooper, he will be rested, healthy, and have plenty of time to learn enough of the playbook to step right into a significant role. This is a win-now move; teams don't give up first round picks for players that aren't going to play immediately. Cooper's snap share will be high.
Cooper has had issues with drops and concentration and now has to deal with one of the least creative offenses in the NFL. I want to believe the talent is still there, but, even so, I have no faith in the Cowboys to scheme the ball for Cooper. If you own Cooper in a redraft league, I would explore trade options over the next week or so. While the move to Dallas is a short-term boon for his fantasy value, I think his perceived value is greater than his actual value. If you can sell him for an RB2 or package him for a WR2, make that move. If you can't move him, he should at least be a WR3, so all is not lost. Cooper's arrival doesn't hurt anyone's fantasy value because no one on Dallas outside of Ezekiel Elliott had any fantasy value anyway. From a Cowboys perspective, the only person impacted by the move is Cooper himself.
On the Raiders end, it is no surprise that the Jon Gruden era is, thus far, an unmitigated disaster. Every indication from the moment Gruden was signed is that he is completely out of touch with reality and not equipped to run a team in 2018. That is proving to be true. The Raiders now have a 33-year-old just a few years removed from a torn ACL as their top receiver in Jordy Nelson. Martavis Bryant and Seth Roberts will now be seeing increased snaps. Roberts is not fantasy relevant, but Bryant could be interesting now that he will see more playing time. He's had moments in the past. He just can't seem to get his head on straight and is always seemingly on the precipice of being suspended. Bryant doesn't have a touchdown on the season and has only caught more than three balls in a game once (four in Week 1). He also has one of the league's most inconsistent QBs throwing him the ball. Regardless, he's worth a speculative add.
On a final note, if anyone streamed the Colts defense against the Bills, don't drop them yet. They get the Raiders this week. You can and should stream defenses against the Raiders going forward. Derek Carr is a legitimate threat to lead the league in picks this year. With Marshawn Lynch on IR and Cooper now a Cowboy, the Raiders are quite starved for players with difference-making ability. While it remains to be seen whether the Cowboys gain much from this trade, it's clear the Raiders are playing for the future.
