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After Cowboys owner and G.M. Jerry Jones claimed that he was “all in” (in the normal sense) for the 2024 season, it quickly became clear that they couldn’t start adding new players until they extended the contracts of receiver CeeDee Lamb and quarterback Dak Prescott.
The ensuing foot-dragging that lasted through the start of free agency and beyond prompted an observation that, when it comes to managing the contracts of their most talented players, the Cowboys are: (1) cheap; (2) short-sighted; and (3) not as smart as they think they are.
During his Tuesday appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, Jones provided more proof for that specific brand of generic pudding by reflecting on the decision to trade receiver Amari Cooper, only two years into a five-year, $100 million deal.
“We went for the dollars,” Jones said regarding the trade that sent Cooper to Cleveland prior to the 2022 season. “When we traded Amari Cooper, we saved almost $20 million for our cap and in the future. We took a lesser draft pick to get that savings.”
Actually, they would have taken no draft pick to get the savings, if it had come to that. The Cowboys had planned to cut Cooper, if they couldn’t trade him.
Yes, they got a fifth-round pick and a swap of sixth-round selections from a team that was happy to take on the remaining $60 million over three years. And then, after the Cowboys shed Cooper’s $20 million salary for 2022, the receiver market spiked.
Davante Adams got traded and paid. Tyreek Hill got traded and paid. Although there was plenty of fugazi baked into their contracts (Adams supposedly got $28 million per year and Hill supposedly got $30 million), the real numbers — $22.9 million per year for Adams and $25 million per year for Hill — suggested that the Cowboys had misread the market.
Cooper had a pair of 1,000-yard seasons in Cleveland, despite starting quarterback Deshaun Watson playing only six games each year. In 2023, Cooper was a Pro Bowler. If the Browns were contenders this…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/jerry-jones-trading-amari-cooper-033604430.html
Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Publish date : 2024-10-23 03:36:04
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