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Cooper, who turns 24 in June, is set to make
$3.5 million in 2018, the fourth year of his rookie contract. As
a former top-10 pick, Cooper's fifth-year option -- guaranteed
only for injury -- would be worth the average of the top-10 wide
receiver contracts in the NFL, currently a shade under $14
million.
The deadline to pick up the option is May 3.
Taken fourth overall in 2015, Cooper had 155 catches for 2,223
yards and 11 touchdowns through two NFL seasons before finishing
with 48 catches, 680 yards and seven scores last season. A
whopping 22.9 percent of Cooper's receptions (11) and 30.9
percent of his yards (210) in 2017 came in one game, a Thursday
night shootout with the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7.
New head coach Jon Gruden voiced his confidence in Cooper at the
league meetings in Orlando, Fla., last month, adding that the
fourth-year wideout must bounce back from a down season.
"We need him to be the player he was the first two years,"
Gruden told reporters. "We're going to make him the main vein of
our passing offense and move him around a lot. ... We're really
excited about him. I think he's entering the prime of his
career."
Cooper battled a foot injury as a rookie and an ankle injury
last season, but he has played in 46 of 48 possible contests
through three years, making 41 starts.
--Field Level Media
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