The New England Patriots will have an extremely hard time affording receiver Amari Cooper — not with their salary cap situations as it is.
The Dallas Cowboys are expected to release Cooper before free agency opens in March, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. That means the team is likely open to trading him prior to that point.
If there’s any big-budget free agent the Patriots would target, it’s probably their in-house candidate: cornerback J.C. Jackson. He is slated to enter free agency, and while the Patriots are unlikely to be able to offer him a long-term contract extension, they could place the franchise tag on him at roughly $17 million for 2022. That would put the Patriots over the salary cap but about $9 million — and Cooper’s contract (essentially a three-year, $60 million deal, if traded) would put the Patriots even further into the red.
So if the Patriots are resistant to tagging Jackson, they’ll also have the same issues with trading for Cooper. If he were to hit the open market, he will have better options than New England for a gig. Other teams have better quarterbacks and more money.
Cowboys are “likely” to release WR Amari Copper by the start of the new league year, per league sources.
Cooper is due $20 million in fully guaranteed money on the fifth day of the new league year, March 20.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 4, 2022
As exciting as it is to see a receiver hit the open market before free agency — and have the eligibility to sign with a team without impacting their compensatory pick formula (something that would surely appeal to Bill Belichick — the Patriots have only an outside chance of adding Cooper.
The only way it would work? The Patriots’ best option would be to trade for him and try to sign him to an extension. New England could trade a mid-round pick to acquire Cooper before restructuring his deal to something in the neighborhood of five years and $116 million — but would backload the salary money to ensure his cap him was minimal in 2022.
CRAZY idea. Trade a 4th-rounder for Amari Cooper.
Extend him to a 5-year, $116 million deal. $25M signing bonus.
2022: $1M salary | $6M cap hit
2023: $20M salary | $25M cap hit
2024: $20M salary | $25M cap hit
2026: $25M salary | $30M cap hit
2026: $25M salary | $30M cap hit— Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis) March 4, 2022
But if Cooper has the opportunity to taste the open free-agent market, he may find a way to get an even bigger deal elsewhere. And so he might be reluctant to accept a trade and extension in New England.
