As the Cleveland Browns' season spirals, Amari Cooper will likely hear his name in trade rumors until he's moved or the Nov. 5 deadline passes. The star wide receiver isn't worried about the chatter.
"I'm not thinking about that," Cooper said Thursday, via the Akron Beacon Journal. "I'm not thinking about us not winning some games. I'm thinking about us winning some games. So that doesn't even cross my mind."
Suggesting the 1-4 Browns have struggled to move the ball would be an understatement. Cleveland sits as the only team not to score 20 points in a single game in 2024. The Browns are the third team in the last 10 seasons not to score 20-plus points in any of their first five games -- 2019 Dolphins (finished 5-11) and 2023 Raiders (finished 8-9).
With 20 catches for 208 yards and two touchdowns, Cooper leads Cleveland in catches (tied with running back Jerome Ford) and TDs. Jerry Jeudy leads the club with 213 yards.
Cooper noted he's frustrated by the lack of production but isn't looking to bail on the Browns.
"I mean, it's the easiest thing in the world to do, to jump off the ship when it's sinking, I guess I would say," Cooper said. "I don't even consider myself that type of person -- that's what people who aren't dedicated to, that's what people who aren't committed to. Things get hard sometimes. You just have to fight your way through it. I'm a fighter. I know the guys on his team, they're fighters and that's what fighters do until the end, fight until the end. So that's what we're going to do."
Cooper was reportedly part of a potential trade package with the San Francisco 49ers during the offseason. The move ultimately went nowhere, but the Browns' willingness to move on from the big-play wideout then will keep chatter alive until the trade deadline.
Cooper is in the final year of his contract.
On Sunday, the Browns face a Philadelphia Eagles defense that has allowed 24.0 points per game (22nd in the NFL), 6.0 yards per play (30th) and 365.8 total yards per game (27th).
"I mean, just go out there and try to play your best," Cooper said of his plans for the matchup. "That's my role in that. Nothing else really matters. All the words, all the talking, things of that nature. Just want to play as well as I can to make (Deshaun Watson's) job easy."
So far in 2024, nothing about the Browns offense has come easy.
