The Cleveland Browns offense has been a sad spectacle through two games, and perhaps no one outside of quarterback Deshaun Watson is a better embodiment of that than five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Cooper has caught just 5 passes for 27 yards on 17 targets across two games and dropped what would have been a long touchdown pass in Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys. On Thursday, September 19, the wideout spoke with media members and did two things that stood out — he admitted that he wasn’t going all out in practice and pledged to change that moving forward.
“I went out there yesterday, I practiced like the game. And that’s what I’m going to go and do every single day — just treat the practice like the game, attacking it just like I would the game,” Cooper said. “I can’t say I’ve necessarily been doing that, but that’s what I got to do.”
Cooper then faced the natural follow-up inquiry of why he hasn’t been giving 100 percent during practice sessions.
“Sometimes you just fall off a little bit. You need a reminder,” he explained. “That’s what the first two weeks gave me, and so I’m back on track I would say.”
Amari Cooper Has Been Browns’ Best Wide Receiver for 2 Seasons
Cooper has been a far cry from the Pro Bowler he was last season and the Browns’ clearcut top receiver, which he’s been for each of the past two years.
He put up 1,160 yards and 9 TDs on 78 catches in 2022, following that up with 72 grabs for 1,250 yards and 5 scores in 2023, per Pro Football Reference.
Cooper’s production has been astounding for the Browns considering what the team paid the Cowboys to acquire him in trade two years ago — just a fifth-round draft selection and a sixth-round pick swap.
The wideout has lived up to the five-year, $100 million contract on which he is currently playing, save for the first two games of the 2024 campaign.
Coincidentally, this season is also the final one on Cooper’s deal, meaning he is playing in a contract year at the age of 30 — all the more incentive to perform well considering the kind of paydays receivers have been hauling in over the past couple offseasons.
Browns Offense Near Bottom of NFL in Most Major Categories
The entire Browns offense has been anemic through two games, and there is plenty of blame to go around.
Cleveland is ranked 27th in the NFL in total offense at just 263.5 yards per game. The passing attack has the same ranking of 27th with just 154.5 yards through the air per contest, according to ESPN.
The run game has only been a little bit better, coming in at 23rd with 109 rushing yards per contest. There is at least a moderate excuse there given the absence of four-time Pro Bowler Nick Chubb, who continues to rehabilitate a devastating knee injury he suffered approximately one full calendar year ago against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
