FRISCO, Texas – Cowboys’ receiver Amari Cooper was named the NFC’s Offensive Player Of The Week for the second time in six weeks, the first time in franchise history. It does not take long talking with Cooper to know why. He is a very humble guy that is completely focused on helping his team win each week. Even more impressive, this is his first year in Dallas and he has only been on the team since week nine, after being traded by the Raiders in exchange for a first round pick. Needless to say, the Raiders are second-guessing their bargain with the Cowboys and release of Amari.
Cooper is a candidate for the 2019 Pro-Bowl to represent the Cowboys in Orlando and he leads the NFL in receiving yards (642), receiving first downs (32), is tied for the lead in touchdown catches (six), and leads the receiving position in the league with 286 yards after the catch. Cooper has held the receiving leader spot in the NFL since week nine. He also leads the NFL in first down receptions on third down with 11, and is fourth in first down percentage since coming to Dallas (80.0%), helping the Cowboys stay ahead of the chains.
No matter how many accomplishments come his way, he is always quick to recognize his teammates and point heads in their direction.
In response to his second NFC Offensive Player of the week standing Cooper responded, “ It’s cool. When a team has success that is when the individual accolades come into play. “
He does his job on the field and does not want any added recognition. In discussing a couple missed deep ball connections between him and Dak Prescott earlier in the season, he immediately stated “ those were my fault, “ and went on to describe that he did not finish his routes the way he should have and as a result, Prescott’s ball was overthrown. These two have great confidence in one another and Amari has opened things up for the passing game and helped out Dak tremendously by creating separation from corners.
“ He does such a good job getting open; in man-to-man running a variety of routes, is very quarterback friendly in zone, and typically gives the quarterback a good place to throw the football…the comfort level that he has with Dak, the way they communicate with each other, and the way they see things the same way-They have really benefited from being around each other. “
Cooper has changed the dynamic of the Cowboys’ offense and he is a guy that defenses look for at the line of scrimmage and memorize where he is on the field.
Amari is a big reason that America’s Team now sits at an 8-5 record and only needs one more win to solidify the NFC East title heading into playoffs.
