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A lot was made of Cleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper and his contract this past offseason. The five-time Pro Bowler is playing under a five-year, $100 million contract.
Based on how Cooper has performed during his stint with Cleveland and given how the wide receiver market has exploded; this deal was not up to snuff for the Browns’ top pass-catcher.
It led to speculation that Cooper could be a holdout from training camp as he angles for a new contract. With Cleveland opening camp on Tuesday, that’s not going to be the case.
According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, Cooper has agreed to a contract restructue. The deal guarantees him his $20 million salary while providing the star an opportunity to earn $5 million more in incentives. He also got half of that $20 million in guarantees upfront.
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The last thing Cleveland needed heading into training camp was drama surrounding its top receiver. That’s especially true with embattled quarterback Deshaun Watson looking to rebound from an injury-plagued 2023 campaign.
Since being acquired from the Dallas Cowboys ahead of the 2022 season, Cooper has performed extremely well for the Browns.
Those numbers came with a plethora of different starting quarterbacks due to Watson’s suspension in 2022 and injury last season. Continuity is important with Watson coming off an injury.
As for Cooper’s contract, it is still undervalued in the grand scheme of things. He’s the 20th highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL on a per-year basis.