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With the Chicago Bears deciding not to place the franchise tag on wide receiver Allen Robinson, the team will be in need of a new No. 1 wideout before the 2022 season begins.
On the March 7 CHGO Bears Podcast, ex-Bears All-Pro center Olin Kreutz said he wouldn’t hate to see his former team pursue Dallas Cowboys wideout Amari Cooper, who has been the subject of offseason trade rumors.
“I think you have to look into it,” Kreutz said. “Their problem is scoring points. That really is the Bears’ No. 1 problem is putting the ball in the end zone. … You have to look into a guy like Amari Cooper if you’re the Chicago Bears.”
Kreutz isn’t wrong. The Bears finished 27th in the NFL in points per game last season (18.3), 22nd in 2020 (23.3) and 29th in 2019 (17.5). It’s also no secret 23-year-old quarterback Justin Fields needs weapons — but would taking on Cooper’s contract be worth it?
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Cooper Inked 5 Year, $100 Million With Cowboys in 2020
Cooper has played through two years of the five-year, $100 million deal he signed with the Cowboys in 2020. With an annual salary of $20 million, Cooper won’t come cheap. But team insider Adam Hoge, who appeared with Kreutz on the CHGO podcast, thinks the 27-year-old wideout may be worth it.
“He’s a year younger than Allen Robinson, and I’ll tell you what — he was on my fantasy team this year and he sure seemed like a No. 1 wide receiver until he got COVID. … He obviously was one of these guys that I think got affected a little bit more by getting COVID than others, and it affected the rest of his season.”
Cooper played in 15 games last year, starting 14. He missed the team’s Week 11 and Week 12 games after testing positive for COVID-19, and he had a bit of a down year statistically.
The four-time Pro Bow WR caught 68 passes for 865 yards (12.7 yards per catch) and eight scores. In his seven seasons in the league, Cooper has five 1,000-yard seasons, and he has been targeted over 100 times in six of the seven.
“I think Amari Cooper is still a good wide receiver as long as his medicals all check out,” Hoge added. “He’s stayed mostly healthy other than that and I just think that he’s that dude. He’s the dude you get on offense that helps right away.”
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Bears Could Clear Enough Cap Space to Afford Cooper
The Bears currently have over $26 million in cap space, per Spotrac. There are multiple scenarios that involve Chicago cutting players that would free up enough cap room — or close to it — to make trading for Cooper possible.
The Bears could cut veteran offensive lineman Cody Whitehair ($12.3 million cap hit) and veteran nose tackle Eddie Goldman ($11.81 million), creating over $24 million in space. They could also release the trio of Goldman, running back Tarik Cohen ($5.75 million cap hit), veteran linebacker Danny Trevathan ($5.8 million), creating just over $23 million in room.
The Bears may want to wait and see if the Cowboys outright release the veteran receiver, however. Top NFL insider Adam Schefter tweeted on March 4 that Dallas was “likely” to release him by the start of the new league year on March 16.
Considering this info, Chicago should definitely wait and see if Cooper is let go. If that happens, the team should pounce. If not, the Bears should still look into a potential trade, particularly with A-Rob hitting the open market.
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