Football 'savant' Amari Cooper having a blast on Browns playoff ride
Dec. 25—Putting up record-setting numbers is cool. Putting up record-breaking numbers to help a team reach the playoffs is way cooler.
Amari Cooper set two Browns franchise records Dec. 24 in a 36-22 rout of the Texans. He posted 265 receiving yards, breaking the record of 261 set by Josh Gordon in 2013, and he became the first receiver in Browns history with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, He had 1,160 receiving yards last year and stands at 1,250 yards in 2023 with two games to play.
The 2013 Browns, 3-2 after five games, were 1-10 the rest of the way. Gordon had a spectacular season on a Browns team that was outscored, 406-308, and lost 12 games.
By contrast, virtually every catch Cooper has made has been vital to the Browns' playoff push — especially since Joe Flacco became the starting quarterback Dec. 3. The Browns (10-5) will clinch a playoff spot if they beat the Jets on Dec. 28 in a Thursday Night Football game at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
"Winning is always fun," Cooper told reporters in Houston after the game. "It doesn't matter the teammates. You can have the coolest teammates, but if you're losing it's not going to be so much fun because we come in here every day. We labor.
"That's a lot of hard work. You want to see some results from all of that hard work and when you don't, it's very disappointing. So I'm having a lot of fun."
Cooper has five touchdown catches — three of them from Flacco. The Flacco-to-Cooper combination hooked up on a 51-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter against the Bears on Dec. 17. The touchdown tied the score at 17-17, and then Dustin Hopkins broke the tie on a 34-yard field goal with 32 seconds left.
Cooper might be tightly covered, but Flacco somehow fits the ball into the only opening Cooper needs to make the catch. The touchdown against the Bears was like that when Flacco saw Cooper cutting across the middle with two defenders on him.
Flacco appeared to be in trouble from the Houston pass rush in the second quarter Dec. 24, but he slid to his left and saw Cooper running down the left sideline. Cooper was well-covered again, but Flacco was confident Cooper would haul in the pass if he threw the pass well. Flacco did his part and so did Cooper. The play went 75 yards for a touchdown.
"Honestly, to be completely candid, I would attribute most of it to Joe," Cooper said. "I mean, he just has an incredible feel for the game. He has an incredible arm. I think obviously with the relationship between a receiver and a quarterback, it's a symbiotic relationship. But the best way to explain it is we mesh well together."
Flacco agrees.
"He's not like our biggest burner, but man, he did an awesome job on that route (75-yard touchdown). Just pushing the corner and then splitting 'em," Flacco said. "He's special. We were able to get him open downfield a little bit, but he was also able to go up for some balls and just be strong through the catch and all that stuff."
Andrew Berry has made several shrewd trades since being hired as Browns' general manager in 2020, At the top of the list is getting Hopkins from the Chargers on Aug. 28 for a 2025 seventh-round draft pick.
Berry got Cooper in a trade with the Cowboys in March 2022, and all it cost was a 2022 fifth-round pick. The Browns and Cowboys also agreed to swap sixth-round picks in 2022.
"I'm happy for Amari because he's a consummate pro," head coach Kevin Stefanski said about Cooper setting the franchise single-game receiving record. "He's one of the best I've ever been around.
"What he knows about this game, the way he sees this game — he's like a savant out there. He's one of this team's leaders. These guys love Amari, and to see him come through is awesome."
It won't happen this season, his ninth NFL season, but Cooper is closing in on 10,000 career receiving yards. He has 9,489 yards with the Raiders, Cowboys and Browns.
Browns add kicker
Hopkins pulled a hamstring as he unsuccessfully tried to chase Houston kick returner Dameon Pierce on a 98-yard kick return for a touchdown.
The Browns aren't taking any chances with the quick turnaround before playing the Jets on Dec. 28. Riley Patterson, who played for the Lions, Jaguars and Lions again from 2021-23, was signed to the Browns' practice squad Dec. 25. The 24-year-old kicker,who attended college at Memphis, is 58 of 66 on career field goal attempts in the NFL. He was 15 of 17 on field goal tries with the Lions this season.
Injury report
Browns — Punter Corey Bojorquez (left quad), kicker Dustin Hopkins (left hamstring), running back Kareem Hunt (groin), defensive end Ogbo Okoronkwo, quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (hip) and linebacker Anthony Walker did not practice Dec. 25.
Jets — Offensive lineman Duane Brown (back), defensive back Justin Hardee (foot), quarterback Aaron Rodgers (Achilles), tight end Jeremy Ruckert (concussion) and quarterback Zach Wilson (concussion) did not practice.
JETS AT BROWNS
When: 8:15 p.m., Dec. 28
Where: Cleveland Browns Stadium
Records: Jets 6-9, Browns 10-5
TV: PRIME, WEWS
Radio: WKRK-FM 92.3, WNCX-FM 98.5, WKNR-AM 850
