Why Bears may not sign Cooper if released by Cowboys originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The NFL’s wide receiver market changed drastically on Friday with multiple reports saying the Cowboys were likely to part ways with Amari Cooper. With the Packers expected to retain Davante Adams, if Cooper does become available he’d instantly shoot to the top of the wishlist for any WR-needy team, alongside Chris Godwin. Ryan Poles and the Bears would be included among those teams. But when you take a look at the bigger picture, Poles may decide it’s more prudent to spend the money elsewhere.
Right now, the Bears have 47 players under contract for the upcoming season, with just over $25.6 million in salary cap space. The team can probably afford one or two top-tier contracts this year, but they’ll have to employ some creative accounting to fill all their roster holes while staying under the cap. And with all those aforementioned roster holes, plus a deep WR free agent market and draft class, you have to wonder whether Poles will opt to spend bigger money elsewhere.
Let’s take a step back and see why the Bears will take a serious look at Cooper if he becomes available. Cooper has crossed the 1,000 yard threshold in five of his seven career seasons (this includes his 1,005 combined yards between the Raiders and Cowboys in 2018). He averages 6.6 touchdowns per year. For all the questions about his durability, Cooper has only missed five games over his entire NFL career. And he’s only going to be 28 years old this season.
One trait both Poles and Matt Eberflus have said they’ll be targeting in wide receivers is explosive playmaking ability, and Cooper has that too. He’s a deceptive route runner who sets up defenders with excellent releases. He’s especially effective at creating separation with double moves, since he’s so good at selling routes, too.
But for Cooper to be effective on his double move deep routes, he needs time to let them develop, and time is not something Justin Fields was afforded last year. Fields was pressured on 27.3% of his dropbacks last season, a huge difference from Dak Prescott’s 19.2%. Fields was sacked on 11.8% of his pass plays. Prescott was only sacked 4.8% of the time. If opposing defenses can continue to generate that type of pressure on Fields next year, it could negate one of Cooper’s biggest strengths.
Poles has also made it clear that while he knows the Bears need to add explosive playmakers, he believes the first step for any offense is building a solid offensive line. Poles has been coy about sharing how he feels young players like Teven Jenkins, Larry Borom and Sam Mustipher fit, and whether he wants to move forward with veterans like Cody Whitehair and James Daniels. But he has declared that changes will be coming to the offensive line, with an emphasis on getting lighter and faster. The extent of those changes from a personnel standpoint remains to be seen, but with Poles’ focus on the line it wouldn’t be surprising to see him spend free agent dollars on a big name tackle or center instead of shelling out for a playmaker. In that scenario, it’s easy to see a path for Poles to fill out the wide receiver room with a wave two free agent signing, like Christian Kirk or Russell Gage, and pairing that signing with a higher draft pick on player like George Pickens, David Bell, Jameson Williams, or any of the numerous other players that may be available when the Bears’ No. 39 overall pick rolls around.
There’s no denying wide receiver is a huge area of need for the Bears, and they can effectively address it many different ways. In the end, the bevy of options may have the Bears turning away from the marquee names so they can address other needs with big-money signings.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly> Chicago Catch-Up newsletter.
Click here to follow the Under Center Podcast.
