The Buffalo Bills inactive person a playoff crippled to navigate against the Kansas City Chiefs connected Sunday, Jan. 26, but if they bash autumn to Patrick Mahomes and Co. successful the AFC Championship Game, it'll beryllium clip for the Bills to crook their attraction to the offseason.
As was the lawsuit earlier the season, the Bills could beryllium successful the marketplace for a receiver successful 2025. The commercialized acquisition of Amari Cooper hasn't precisely panned out arsenic overmuch arsenic Buffalo had hoped, and he's acceptable to beryllium a escaped cause this offseason.
Assuming the Bills privation to support Cooper, they're going to person immoderate contention connected the unfastened marketplace for his services. One of the teams that volition apt beryllium connected that database is the Pittsburgh Steelers, who were successful the aforesaid vessel arsenic the Bills successful 2024 successful presumption of their request astatine wide receiver earlier settling connected Mike Williams, who did not springiness Pittsburgh the upgrade it needed.
In a caller nonfiction making a free-agent prediction for Cooper, TWSN's Steve Bradshaw believes helium volition extremity up with the Steelers.
"Pickens has flashed successful his NFL career, but without large backmost play oregon different receiver to instrumentality immoderate attraction disconnected him, it hasn’t been creaseless sailing," helium said. "As an X-receiver, I expect Cooper to really assistance retired Pickens’ stats alternatively than wounded them."
Over 8 regular play games with the Bills, Cooper tallied 297 yards and 2 touchdowns. He had 47 less yards and the aforesaid fig of scores successful 2 little games with the Browns, truthful intelligibly the modulation to Buffalo hasn't been great.
Over his archetypal 2 playoff games, Cooper has been non-existent, catches 2 passes for 8 yards. Barring his coming live the remainder of the playoffs, determination are plentifulness of reasons to judge Buffalo won't bring him back.
Despite his lackluster production, Cooper has been a bully worker done it each and is conscionable blessed to beryllium connected a winning squad with a accidental to vie for a Super Bowl.
"I'm precise satisfied. I've ne'er been this acold successful the playoffs," Cooper said, per The Associated Press. "Obviously, each receiver wants to have, you know, 10-20 catches a game. But that's not ever however the cooky crumbles.
"Winning is mode much important, and there's galore ways to win. So perfectly nary complaints from me, due to the fact that that's each I genuinely wanted. I mean, I've had it each different mode and haven't truly reached the pinnacle of this sport."
Assuming his down twelvemonth is conscionable a premix of mediocre backmost play successful Cleveland and having trouble getting acclimated successful Buffalo and not an existent diminution astatine 30, Cooper would beryllium a fantastic moving mate for Steelers No. 1 wideout, George Pickens.
Not lone would helium instrumentality unit disconnected the young receiver, Cooper could besides service arsenic a mentor of sorts to Pickens, who has had nary shortage of behavioral issues during his clip successful Pittsburgh and could usage immoderate direction.
After landing a $100 cardinal woody successful his past contract, Spotrac estimates Cooper volition spot a two-year, $28.4 cardinal woody successful escaped agency. The Steelers are successful a overmuch amended presumption to spend that, arsenic they're acceptable to person $40 cardinal successful headdress space, per Over the Cap. Meanwhile, the Bills volition commencement retired $6.9 cardinal implicit the cap.
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