The Cleveland Browns got to work in mandatory minicamp on Tuesday, but not with star wide receiver Amari Cooper. Cooper has been absent for both mandatory and voluntary offseason work as he seeks a contract extension entering the final year of his deal.
On Tuesday, Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski weighed in on the impact of Cooper’s absence this summer. He insisted the Browns have had open dialogue with the veteran receiver, but declined to speculate on when he might return to the team facility.
“The guys that are here… I understand, these situations do come up,” Stefanski said. “I’ll really leave all that between Amari and Amari’s agent, AB and those type of conversations.”
Cooper is entering the final year of his contract, which he originally signed with the Dallas Cowboys, and is set to become a free agent at the end of the season. Because he’s opting to skip mandatory minicamp, Cooper is subject to fines from the team. However, considering his base salary for 2024 is $20 million, the fines are unlikely to ruffle his feathers.
Last season, Cooper was the top receiver on the team, posting 72 receptions for 1,250 yards with five touchdowns. The 2024 season is his 10th in the league and third with the Browns. The Dallas Cowboys traded Cooper to the Browns after the 2021 season in which he had 865 yards in 15 games played. Cleveland took over the final years of his five-year, $100 million contract. He went on to post a 2022 season with 78 catches, 1,160 yards and nine touchdowns.
After nine seasons in the NFL, Cooper has amassed 667 catches in 140 regular-season games with 9,486 receiving yards and 60 touchdowns. The former first-rounder turns 30 next week.
Jerry Jeudy excited to play with Amari Cooper
With the acquisition of Jerry Jeudy, the Cleveland Browns now boast a receiver tandem forged in the fires of Tuscaloosa under Nick Saban.
The Browns acquired Jeudy from the Denver Broncos in exchange for a 2024 fifth and sixth-round pick. That makes him teammates with Amari Cooper, another former Alabama wideout who set records during his time in the program. Cooper was one of the first players to reach out to Jeudy after news of the trade broke.
“I’ll be having my moments like, ‘I’m about to play with Coop,’” Jeudy said. “I’ve been watching him for so long – I don’t think you understand how much time, how many highlights I’ve been putting in, how many hours I put in watching him. So, being able to just be in the same locker room and learn from him, it’s going to be exciting.”
Unless Cooper continues his holdout into next month, Jeudy will finally get his wish to get on the field with the former Alabama standout at training camp.
The post Kevin Stefanski addresses Amari Cooper’s absence from minicamp appeared first on On3.
