Why the Redskins should consider trading for Amari Cooper

Amari Cooper‘s name has been on the trade block lately. Should the Washington Redskins consider making an offer for him?

Amari Cooper may not be the most exciting name in the NFL right now. For the better part of the past two seasons, he has been on-again, off-again threat and this year has been no different. Every other game, Cooper puts up big numbers. But in the games in between, he totally disappears. It’s truly strange for a receiver that was a downfield weapon and 1,000-yard threat when he first came into the league.

With the Raiders now in a state of flux and Cooper not connecting with Derek Carr, there have been plenty of rumors about him being moved for a draft pick. While nothing may ultimately happen, one would think that some potential contender that needs a wide-out might pay the Raiders price to bring Cooper to town. Of course, their asking price is too high right now, but if it gets knocked down to a third or fourth round pick, it could be worth the risk for some team.

It’s possible that team could be the Redskins. The team has a need at the receiver position and has enough assets available that they could target Cooper in the event that they think he could be an upgrade for the squad.

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Currently, the Redskins have one of the weaker receiver groups in the NFL. They lack a true No. 1 guy, and Josh Doctson hasn’t made the leap that many expected he would in his third season. Paul Richardson has been a fine speed threat, but not much more. Meanwhile, Jamison Crowder is dealing with an injury while the rest of the receivers are merely backup-caliber veterans.

Adding Cooper to the mix might not fix the problem, but it certainly couldn’t hurt. Cooper would likely take on Doctson’s role as the bigger-bodied outside man and could have a chance to do better than the TCU product in that role. And if Cooper could work hard enough to regain the form he showed during his first two NFL seasons, he could easily become the most talented receiver on the Redskins roster — and possibly their best overall offensive player.

Of course, there are also a lot of hurdles to jump over to make this happen. First, the Redskins would have to be willing to part with a third- or fourth-round pick, which might be difficult to do considering that Cooper hasn’t lived up to his potential since 2016. Additionally, Cooper is dealing with a concussion, so that injury could cause teams to shy away from him.

It would also help the Redskins cause in trade talks that Raiders head coach Jon Gruden is obviously Jay Gruden’s brother. That would make negotiations a bit easier, and the guarantee that Cooper would be out of the AFC could help Jon Gruden to make the deal.

Also, it’s notable that the Eagles could consider trading for Cooper to fill the void they have at receiver, so if the Redskins want to avoid more competition as they go for the division crown, that could come into consideration.

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At this point, all of this is just speculation. But with the trade deadline approaching at the end of October, anything is possible. The Redskins should at least call up the Raiders and ask about Cooper. If he’s too expensive or if they don’t like his fit with the team, they don’t have to go after him. But the potential upgrade is there, so they should at least do their due diligence.

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