Amari Cooper Says He Wants To Be A Member Of The Dallas Cowboys For His Entire Career
The Dallas Cowboys have a couple of big decisions to make in the coming weeks, and whether or not Amari Cooper will return in 2020 is near the top of the list. The wide receiver, acquired during the 2018 season, could be a free agent in a matter of days. He could also be locked into a new contract when the NFL’s new year begins later this month. For his part, Cooper has publicly made it clear he’d like to stick around, recently saying he’d like to be with Dallas for the rest of his career.
David Helmen of Dallas Cowboys.com reports the receiver appeared in an interview with 105.3 FM The Fan in Dallas on Thursday night. Helmen says Cooper made his preference known quite clearly.
“I love being a Dallas Cowboy. I was just thinking about that today – I think about it almost every day, really. Prime time games, it seems like more night games than anybody, and that always feels good for football players. Everything – the facility, I love it here in Frisco. Just the aura of being a Dallas Cowboy, I mean you can’t beat it. I want to be a Dallas Cowboy for life.”
Fans of Amari Cooper have to be impressed he’s that sold on the team considering he’s only played for them for a little over one season. Of course, he comes from a more dysfunctional franchise in the former Oakland Raiders.
Cooper posted the best overall season of his career in 2019, catching 79 passes for 1,189 yards and eight touchdowns. The catches and TDs were both career highs, while the 79 receptions were just shy of his single season-best. The question isn’t whether the Cowboys would like to keep Cooper because of his talent. Helmen makes it clear the team would like to keep the receiver in the fold. The problem is the number of players the franchise is going to try and hold onto at one time.
At the very top of the list is the question of what will happen with quarterback Dak Prescott. While the two sides have been talking about working out a deal, there isn’t one done yet. Helmen mentioned the Cowboys are thinking about slapping the franchise tag on Prescott. If they do that, they could use the transition tag on another player and that player could be Cooper.
The receiver is among those who believe the future of Prescott is most important for the team. Should the Cowboys let Prescott go, it could change the way Amari Cooper thinks of his desire to stick around.
