Amari Cooper ‘poised for career year’

The Cleveland Browns spent the offseason improving their defensive line and pass-catching group. On one side of the ball, the team needed to figure out how to stop the run while the other side needed help in the passing game.

Much has been made about the additions on the defensive line, for good reason, but the receiving group had some solid additions as well:

• WR Elijah Moore
• TE Jordan Akins
• WR Marquise Goodwin
• WR Cedric Tillman

With RB Nick Chubb and the entire offensive line returning, the Browns run game should once again be top-notch despite the departure of D’Ernest Johnson and, likely, Kareem Hunt.

Having additional talent in the passing game with a great running back will make things easier for the team’s top receiving threats, WR Amari Cooper, TE David Njoku and WR Donovan Peoples-Jones.

With that in mind, The 33rd Team has Cooper as one of two receivers poised for career years:

The video in the article includes former Green Bay Packers WR Greg Jennings. Jennings and the host discuss Cleveland’s seeming desire to throw the ball a lot, the added pass catching talent to take attention away from Cooper and the presence of Chubb in their Cooper prediction.

For reference, here are Cooper’s best years:

• Receptions: 92 in 2020
• Yards: 1,189 in 2019 (1,160 with the Browns last year is second)
• Touchdowns: 9 in 2022
• Targets: 132 in both 2022 and 2016
• Yards per reception: 15.1 in 2019 (14.9 last year is tied for second)

In a lot of ways, a slightly better season in 2023 than 2022 in Cleveland would be a career season for Cooper.

It will be interesting to see if the uptick in passing attempts offsets the myriad of pass catching options for Cooper’s production. As we know, impact doesn’t just come in the boxscore but, for The 33rd Team to be accurate, they are needed for a “career year.”

What are your expectations for Cooper this year?