Detroit Lions land on list of landing spots for Amari Cooper

As the Dallas Cowboys apparently move toward cutting him, the Detroit Lions have naturally landed on a list of possible destinations for Amari Cooper.

As the new league year approaches, the Dallas Cowboys have a major decision on wide receiver Amari Cooper. His $20 million base salary for 2022 becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the league year, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Friday he’s likely to be cut. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport added, however obviously, the Cowboys will attempt to trade Cooper before cutting him.

Any team with possible interest in Cooper, with Dallas’ salary cap situation in mind, will just wait for him to be cut rather than part with any assets in a trade. But there will be a lot of interest in a receiver with five 1,000-yard seasons on his resume in seven NFL campaigns, even if Cooper has not quite met lofty expectations overall.

Lions land on list of possible landing spots for Amari Cooper

Mike Kaye of Pro Football Network has a list of five best landing spots for Cooper. Assuming in order, after the Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts, the Detroit Lions round out the list.

"Detroit Lions: If Cooper wants to become the face of an offense, Detroit is where he should go. The Lions have a ton of money, limited wideout talent, and an offense that needs a major jolt of playmaking prowess. Cooper would be given the key to the city after his first big gain for a touchdown."

The Lions do make sense as a team who would or should have interest in Cooper. But that’s assuming they’d make an offer he’d take, or he even wants to play in Detroit as multiple suitors surface, regardless of money on the table. The Lions do have solid cap space, $26.5 million right now according to Over The Cap, but they don’t have as much cap space as the Chargers, Jaguars and Colts from Kaye’s list.

Cooper-to-the-Lions is an enticing idea. But the percentage chance it happens remains low.