GShock
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 6,400
Matt Waletzko.
That will be the name that will forever be etched in the transactional record books when someone spends the time to dust off the 2022 volume and dive deep into what exactly the Dallas Cowboys were able to fetch for Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper when they traded him to Cleveland to alleviate their financial stress.
Matt Waletzko. Or, to be fair, the Cowboys could have used that pick on whatever gem was available at pick No. 155. And not only that, with pick No. 193 Oklahoma State linebacker Devin Harper was secured. But, that also cost them pick No 202.
In total, according to the Jimmy Johnson draft pick valuation chart, the Cowboys were able to gain about 33 total points for the price of Cooper with their March trade to the Cleveland Browns — basically the price of a mid-fifth round pick. And with that, Dallas was able to secure two players who we don’t believe are assured to be on its roster for the 2022 season.
Keeping in mind that Cooper is 27 and has performed at a very high level since he was acquired by the Cowboys in October of 2018, ranking seventh in receptions, ninth in yards, 10th in touchdowns and eighth in first downs in the entire NFL.
Yes, folks will point out that Cooper’s production wasn’t the same since the Mike McCarthy era began (and CeeDee Lamb was drafted) to start the 2020 season, and they would be correct. During those last two seasons, Cooper had dropped to 13th, 16th, 16th and 15th respectively in those four important categories. You certainly cannot call him an elite receiver, but you also can’t suggest that 1,979 yards in the last two seasons is something everyone is getting; because they clearly are not. Players who have been less productive than that in the previous two seasons include AJ Brown (1,944) and Marquise “Hollywood” Brown (1,777) as well as top free-agent signings Christian Kirk (1,603) and Allen Robinson (1,660). Top young receivers Deebo Samuel (1,797) and Michael Pittman (1,585) also rank below Cooper — although Samuel has missed quite a few games (which we remind people is part of Cooper’s appeal — he plays when he isn’t feeling perfect).
So, why are we about to get accused in the comments below of “beating a dead horse” and not letting this Cooper thing go? Because, it has been driving me crazy this past week how badly I would submit the Cowboys botched this thing decision to trade Cooper and I just wanted to write it out now that the draft is done.
Here we go.
I’m not even going to begin the discussion of whether the Cowboys should have kept Cooper. I think they made up their minds that he wasn’t a fit. Fine. Let’s not go back and litigate that all over again. My conclusion that day remains what it is today: There is no way this is a better team without Cooper, but if you wish to diversify your portfolio and make this offense function more without forcing the ball to one guy — as it appears everyone has concluded — then it is time to build this around Lamb’s skill set and fill in with an entire group that makes less than Cooper’s annual money. I don’t love this, but this is the most defendable position to take.
A few weeks later — after the March 16 of trade to Cleveland — I included this from the summary of those two weeks in March: This was a move that is more frustrating than surprising. They were very clear about falling out of love with Cooper and thus, we were pretty sure they were moving on and pushing CeeDee Lamb into his spot. They also liked Michael Gallup on an extension, so Cooper at $20 million per season was not going to work unless he was dominating and he was not in 2021. This was clearly about money and now with $20 million, the Cowboys believe they can employ Schultz and Gallup for the price of Cooper. I don’t love the decision there, but you can at least understand it and we can all admit they didn’t get enough of one of the more gifted and talented receivers in the league.
They weren’t going to keep him and in classic Cowboys family logic, they begin to spill the beans everywhere that they will try to trade him and if they can’t, they will just release him before his 2022 money guarantees. The fact that NFL.com has this information for the whole world to see on March 3 probably really helped the trade market:
Dallas will try to trade Cooper, but will release the veteran receiver if no deal is reached, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Friday, per sources. Cooper’s $20 million base salary becomes guaranteed on the fifth day of the new league year, which begins March 16. If the Cowboys follow through with their plan to part ways with the receiver, it wipes off $16 million from the salary cap, with $6 million in dead money. In essence, Cooper’s extension will wind up being a two-year, $40 million deal.
I mean, are you kidding me? I realize that these contract details can be read by any of us with Google, but the Cowboys really tanked their own market by admitting they would release him if they couldn’t find a trade? I did not attend a business school, but I am pretty sure that you submarine your own market when you tell potential customers that this product will be free if you don’t buy it from us.
What in the world?
They didn’t want his money to guarantee because they would not have the cap room to keep Michael Gallup and to franchise Dalton Schultz, otherwise. We can absolutely disagree with that on the basis of the ability to restructure many of their larger deals they would have wanted, but they did not wish to risk “being stuck” with Cooper this year like they seem to be with Ezekiel Elliott. This is a weird way to build a football team, but we are pretty used to it with this one. They seldom seem to ask what this does to their actual team quality as much as they are trying to move guys in and out based on the language of each contract.
In doing so, they indicated to us (and themselves) that Cooper had no trade value around the league. I think that they sabotaged their own market by leaking out their intentions — as they always seem to do. Further, they worried about the start of the league year as if no team would ever employ a receiver on a $20 million salary, which indicates they had no idea at all what the past two months would do to the WR market.
Now we know — $20 million is no longer the top of the wide receiver market and it isn’t just because the Arizona Cardinals got carried away with DeAndre Hopkins back in 2020. Now, there are four other receivers at or above $24 million with Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams leading the way. The wild part is now AJ Brown has secured $25 million a year from Philadelphia which seems like some massive inflation and Stefon Diggs checks in with his new deal at $24 million. Four others have moved into Cooper’s neighborhood, as DJ Moore, Chris Godwin, the old deal of Keenan Allen, and Mike Williams (yes, the Chargers have two $20 million receivers).
Slotted right below that at $18 million or above are another four receivers in Brandin Cooks, Michael Thomas, Kirk and Kenny Golladay. Add in Tyler Lockett’s contract from last year and 15 receivers are making more than $1 million per game.
Do you know what that means?
Cooper’s deal is no longer ridiculous. Like the Texas weather, sometimes you just have to wait a little bit and an expensive deal actually begins to make sense. Cleveland also added a few restructure years (that are essentially fake — a trick the Cowboys have done for years) to bring his number down even further.
But that isn’t to say he should be on this Cowboys team this year. I can concede that the fit might not have been right and I won’t pretend to know all the intangibles of having him running your wide receiver room. I am just saying their explanations and shrugs seem very odd, given what we now know. And that is they really did a poor job getting a decent return on a 27-year-old receiver who has proven he is a No. 1 receiver in this league and will continue to do that for several more years, it seems.
Let’s prove how poor their return was. There have been nine trades of receivers in the league in past 12 months. Let’s quantify them using the draft pick chart. (Note: For future years’ picks, we must average and find the median point total for that round).
Last 12 months: WR trades
As you can see, the valuations here are pretty wild.
Julio Jones: The Falcons had cap issues and no real use for Jones as they were heading in a brand new direction that did not require a player who was 32 and aging fast. They received about 400 points back which is roughly the 50th pick in the draft. Not great, but fine.
Randall Cobb: Cobb was 31 and had virtually no value and was a concession to Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay had no leverage and still got him for nothing. 10 points.
Robert Woods: This one is worth looking into. Woods has a healing ACL and is turning 30. The Rams had to decide to stick with him or sign Allen Robinson to his deal and then allow Woods to pick where he wanted to play and they agreed to move him for whatever they can get. Tennessee sent back a sixth, but this was the Rams wanting Woods to be happy for being a guy they really wanted to treat right for his years served and the Super Bowl won.
Davante Adams: Traded to the Raiders while tagged and needed a new deal immediately that would reset the market. Teams trading for him would have to pay twice — compensation to the player and to the team. The Packers still were able to get 1,150 points, which is the top half of the first-rounder.
Tyreek Hill: Traded and asked for a new deal immediately to reset the market that Adams just set. Miami, like Las Vegas, had to pay twice — compensation to the player and to the team. They received roughly the same trade package, but with 1,170 points basically got Adams’ deal plus a sixth-rounder. You know, inflation.
DeVante Parker: He’s 29 and Miami had no room for him anymore so the Dolphins traded with their friends in New England along with a fifth for a future third, or 161 points. He has two years left on a very handsome contract, but he is also not of this quality. Seven seasons and just one with more than 800 yards receiving is a tier down, for sure.
AJ Brown: since he was not a first-rounder, he was actually entering his “walk year” and therefore had some leverage. Tennessee just got Woods on a nice deal so perhaps flipping Brown to Philadelphia would be worth it? Yes, they received nearly 1,000 points and then the Eagles also were “double-billed” as they sent a first and a third and then offered $25 million a year. They are probably pleased to have such a talent, but they received no discount whatsoever.
And finally, in chronological order, Marquise Brown: Brown was traded with a third for the first-rounder of the Cardinals to reunite with his college buddy, Kyler Murray. The Cardinals have his fourth and fifth years available at a nice rate or can talk extension with him. Either way, they were able to get him for 660 points and now that Hopkins is suspended, it makes even more sense.
And then Cooper.
I’m sorry, but with Cooper’s deal looking reasonable and his age still 27 with four Pro Bowls and four 1,000-yard receiving seasons, you can convince me that this is the worst return on this list. The only thing close was the Rams actively doing a guy a favor who is 30 and has a torn ACL.
You didn’t have to keep Cooper, but can we stop sabotaging the trade value of the assets of this team before we make our phone calls? I submit doing nothing with Cooper until right now would have put them in a position to get a Day 2 pick from someone after the draft who didn’t get their guy. His contract would have been tradable and the market is clearly much hotter for veteran wide receivers than ever before.
I’ll leave you with this: When was the last time the Cowboys traded a player for either a Day 1 or Day 2 pick in the draft (first-third round draft pick)? I believe it was on Oct. 12, 1989, when Dallas heisted the Minnesota Vikings for a first, second and sixth in 1990, a first and second in 1991 and a first, second and third in 1992 in exchange for Herschel Walker (and three draft picks). Truly the most amazing trade in NFL history.
We sure hope Matt Waletzko has a fine career, lest he remain just a trivia answer.
That will be the name that will forever be etched in the transactional record books when someone spends the time to dust off the 2022 volume and dive deep into what exactly the Dallas Cowboys were able to fetch for Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper when they traded him to Cleveland to alleviate their financial stress.
Matt Waletzko. Or, to be fair, the Cowboys could have used that pick on whatever gem was available at pick No. 155. And not only that, with pick No. 193 Oklahoma State linebacker Devin Harper was secured. But, that also cost them pick No 202.
In total, according to the Jimmy Johnson draft pick valuation chart, the Cowboys were able to gain about 33 total points for the price of Cooper with their March trade to the Cleveland Browns — basically the price of a mid-fifth round pick. And with that, Dallas was able to secure two players who we don’t believe are assured to be on its roster for the 2022 season.
Keeping in mind that Cooper is 27 and has performed at a very high level since he was acquired by the Cowboys in October of 2018, ranking seventh in receptions, ninth in yards, 10th in touchdowns and eighth in first downs in the entire NFL.
Yes, folks will point out that Cooper’s production wasn’t the same since the Mike McCarthy era began (and CeeDee Lamb was drafted) to start the 2020 season, and they would be correct. During those last two seasons, Cooper had dropped to 13th, 16th, 16th and 15th respectively in those four important categories. You certainly cannot call him an elite receiver, but you also can’t suggest that 1,979 yards in the last two seasons is something everyone is getting; because they clearly are not. Players who have been less productive than that in the previous two seasons include AJ Brown (1,944) and Marquise “Hollywood” Brown (1,777) as well as top free-agent signings Christian Kirk (1,603) and Allen Robinson (1,660). Top young receivers Deebo Samuel (1,797) and Michael Pittman (1,585) also rank below Cooper — although Samuel has missed quite a few games (which we remind people is part of Cooper’s appeal — he plays when he isn’t feeling perfect).
So, why are we about to get accused in the comments below of “beating a dead horse” and not letting this Cooper thing go? Because, it has been driving me crazy this past week how badly I would submit the Cowboys botched this thing decision to trade Cooper and I just wanted to write it out now that the draft is done.
Here we go.
I’m not even going to begin the discussion of whether the Cowboys should have kept Cooper. I think they made up their minds that he wasn’t a fit. Fine. Let’s not go back and litigate that all over again. My conclusion that day remains what it is today: There is no way this is a better team without Cooper, but if you wish to diversify your portfolio and make this offense function more without forcing the ball to one guy — as it appears everyone has concluded — then it is time to build this around Lamb’s skill set and fill in with an entire group that makes less than Cooper’s annual money. I don’t love this, but this is the most defendable position to take.
A few weeks later — after the March 16 of trade to Cleveland — I included this from the summary of those two weeks in March: This was a move that is more frustrating than surprising. They were very clear about falling out of love with Cooper and thus, we were pretty sure they were moving on and pushing CeeDee Lamb into his spot. They also liked Michael Gallup on an extension, so Cooper at $20 million per season was not going to work unless he was dominating and he was not in 2021. This was clearly about money and now with $20 million, the Cowboys believe they can employ Schultz and Gallup for the price of Cooper. I don’t love the decision there, but you can at least understand it and we can all admit they didn’t get enough of one of the more gifted and talented receivers in the league.
They weren’t going to keep him and in classic Cowboys family logic, they begin to spill the beans everywhere that they will try to trade him and if they can’t, they will just release him before his 2022 money guarantees. The fact that NFL.com has this information for the whole world to see on March 3 probably really helped the trade market:
Dallas will try to trade Cooper, but will release the veteran receiver if no deal is reached, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Friday, per sources. Cooper’s $20 million base salary becomes guaranteed on the fifth day of the new league year, which begins March 16. If the Cowboys follow through with their plan to part ways with the receiver, it wipes off $16 million from the salary cap, with $6 million in dead money. In essence, Cooper’s extension will wind up being a two-year, $40 million deal.
I mean, are you kidding me? I realize that these contract details can be read by any of us with Google, but the Cowboys really tanked their own market by admitting they would release him if they couldn’t find a trade? I did not attend a business school, but I am pretty sure that you submarine your own market when you tell potential customers that this product will be free if you don’t buy it from us.
What in the world?
They didn’t want his money to guarantee because they would not have the cap room to keep Michael Gallup and to franchise Dalton Schultz, otherwise. We can absolutely disagree with that on the basis of the ability to restructure many of their larger deals they would have wanted, but they did not wish to risk “being stuck” with Cooper this year like they seem to be with Ezekiel Elliott. This is a weird way to build a football team, but we are pretty used to it with this one. They seldom seem to ask what this does to their actual team quality as much as they are trying to move guys in and out based on the language of each contract.
In doing so, they indicated to us (and themselves) that Cooper had no trade value around the league. I think that they sabotaged their own market by leaking out their intentions — as they always seem to do. Further, they worried about the start of the league year as if no team would ever employ a receiver on a $20 million salary, which indicates they had no idea at all what the past two months would do to the WR market.
Now we know — $20 million is no longer the top of the wide receiver market and it isn’t just because the Arizona Cardinals got carried away with DeAndre Hopkins back in 2020. Now, there are four other receivers at or above $24 million with Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams leading the way. The wild part is now AJ Brown has secured $25 million a year from Philadelphia which seems like some massive inflation and Stefon Diggs checks in with his new deal at $24 million. Four others have moved into Cooper’s neighborhood, as DJ Moore, Chris Godwin, the old deal of Keenan Allen, and Mike Williams (yes, the Chargers have two $20 million receivers).
Slotted right below that at $18 million or above are another four receivers in Brandin Cooks, Michael Thomas, Kirk and Kenny Golladay. Add in Tyler Lockett’s contract from last year and 15 receivers are making more than $1 million per game.
Do you know what that means?
Cooper’s deal is no longer ridiculous. Like the Texas weather, sometimes you just have to wait a little bit and an expensive deal actually begins to make sense. Cleveland also added a few restructure years (that are essentially fake — a trick the Cowboys have done for years) to bring his number down even further.
But that isn’t to say he should be on this Cowboys team this year. I can concede that the fit might not have been right and I won’t pretend to know all the intangibles of having him running your wide receiver room. I am just saying their explanations and shrugs seem very odd, given what we now know. And that is they really did a poor job getting a decent return on a 27-year-old receiver who has proven he is a No. 1 receiver in this league and will continue to do that for several more years, it seems.
Let’s prove how poor their return was. There have been nine trades of receivers in the league in past 12 months. Let’s quantify them using the draft pick chart. (Note: For future years’ picks, we must average and find the median point total for that round).
Last 12 months: WR trades
| DATE | TEAM | PLAYER | TRADED TO | FOR PICKS | TOTAL POINTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 9 2021 | Falcons |  Julio Jones | Titans | 2nd and 4th (sent 6th) | 398 |
| July 29 2021 | Texans |  Randall Cobb | Packers | 6th | 10 |
| Mar 16 2022 | Cowboys |  Amari Cooper | Browns | 5th, swap 6ths | 33 |
| Mar 18 2022 | Packers |  Davante Adams | Raiders | 1st and 2nd | 1,150 |
| Mar 23 2022 | Rams |  Robert Woods | Titans | 6th | 22 |
| Mar 24 2022 | Chiefs |  Tyreek Hill | Dolphins | 1st, 2nd, 4th, 4th, and 6th | 1,170 |
| Apr 4 2022 | Dolphins |  DeVante Parker | Patriots | 3rd (sent 5th) | 161 |
| Apr 28 2022 | Titans |  A.J. Brown | Eagles | 1st and 3rd | 996 |
| Apr 28 2022 | Ravens |  Marquise Brown | Cardinals | 1st (sent 3rd) | 660 |
Julio Jones: The Falcons had cap issues and no real use for Jones as they were heading in a brand new direction that did not require a player who was 32 and aging fast. They received about 400 points back which is roughly the 50th pick in the draft. Not great, but fine.
Randall Cobb: Cobb was 31 and had virtually no value and was a concession to Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay had no leverage and still got him for nothing. 10 points.
Robert Woods: This one is worth looking into. Woods has a healing ACL and is turning 30. The Rams had to decide to stick with him or sign Allen Robinson to his deal and then allow Woods to pick where he wanted to play and they agreed to move him for whatever they can get. Tennessee sent back a sixth, but this was the Rams wanting Woods to be happy for being a guy they really wanted to treat right for his years served and the Super Bowl won.
Davante Adams: Traded to the Raiders while tagged and needed a new deal immediately that would reset the market. Teams trading for him would have to pay twice — compensation to the player and to the team. The Packers still were able to get 1,150 points, which is the top half of the first-rounder.
Tyreek Hill: Traded and asked for a new deal immediately to reset the market that Adams just set. Miami, like Las Vegas, had to pay twice — compensation to the player and to the team. They received roughly the same trade package, but with 1,170 points basically got Adams’ deal plus a sixth-rounder. You know, inflation.
DeVante Parker: He’s 29 and Miami had no room for him anymore so the Dolphins traded with their friends in New England along with a fifth for a future third, or 161 points. He has two years left on a very handsome contract, but he is also not of this quality. Seven seasons and just one with more than 800 yards receiving is a tier down, for sure.
AJ Brown: since he was not a first-rounder, he was actually entering his “walk year” and therefore had some leverage. Tennessee just got Woods on a nice deal so perhaps flipping Brown to Philadelphia would be worth it? Yes, they received nearly 1,000 points and then the Eagles also were “double-billed” as they sent a first and a third and then offered $25 million a year. They are probably pleased to have such a talent, but they received no discount whatsoever.
And finally, in chronological order, Marquise Brown: Brown was traded with a third for the first-rounder of the Cardinals to reunite with his college buddy, Kyler Murray. The Cardinals have his fourth and fifth years available at a nice rate or can talk extension with him. Either way, they were able to get him for 660 points and now that Hopkins is suspended, it makes even more sense.
And then Cooper.
I’m sorry, but with Cooper’s deal looking reasonable and his age still 27 with four Pro Bowls and four 1,000-yard receiving seasons, you can convince me that this is the worst return on this list. The only thing close was the Rams actively doing a guy a favor who is 30 and has a torn ACL.
You didn’t have to keep Cooper, but can we stop sabotaging the trade value of the assets of this team before we make our phone calls? I submit doing nothing with Cooper until right now would have put them in a position to get a Day 2 pick from someone after the draft who didn’t get their guy. His contract would have been tradable and the market is clearly much hotter for veteran wide receivers than ever before.
I’ll leave you with this: When was the last time the Cowboys traded a player for either a Day 1 or Day 2 pick in the draft (first-third round draft pick)? I believe it was on Oct. 12, 1989, when Dallas heisted the Minnesota Vikings for a first, second and sixth in 1990, a first and second in 1991 and a first, second and third in 1992 in exchange for Herschel Walker (and three draft picks). Truly the most amazing trade in NFL history.
We sure hope Matt Waletzko has a fine career, lest he remain just a trivia answer.
