Amari Cooper Trade Rumors: At Least 5 Teams Have Discussed Deal for Cowboys WR

The Dallas Cowboys reportedly continue to field trade offers for wide receiver Amari Cooper, with his $20 million salary for 2022 set to become fully guaranteed on March 20.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported Saturday the Cowboys have heard from "at least five teams" that wanted to know the team's asking price for the four-time Pro Bowl selection.

Dallas is attempting to deal Cooper but will otherwise release him before his 2022 salary becomes locked in, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported last week.

The 27-year-old University of Alabama product's impending departure from Dallas is almost entirely related to the team's salary-cap situation and not a drop off in play.

Cooper recorded 68 catches for 865 yards and eight touchdowns in 15 appearances last season. While it marked the first time since 2017 that he didn't reach 1,000 yards, much of that was related to the development of CeeDee Lamb and Dalton Schultz, who combined for 224 targets as part of a balanced passing attack.

The former Oakland Raiders standout has tallied 46 receiving touchdowns since being selected in the first round of the 2015 draft, which ranks ninth in the NFL over that span.

While the Cowboys would surely like to keep that type of production in the fold, it's just not possible because of the receiver's $22 million cap hit in his five-year, $100 million contract and the team owning just $3.1 million in cap space at this stage of the offseason, per Spotrac.

A trade or release will leave just $6 million in dead cap space, creating $16 million in savings.

Although the high level of interest isn't a surprise, the question for other teams is whether to give the Cowboys an asset to acquire Cooper while taking on the remainder of his lucrative deal or simply take their chances of signing him as a free agent against ample competition.

Boardroom's Jordan Schultz reported Friday that Dallas is seeking a third-round draft pick in return but may ultimately settle for a fourth-rounder, with the Cleveland Browns emerging as "real players" in the trade talks.

Getting Cooper for a fourth-round selection would be great value, especially if the team is able to restructure his contract to save some money in the short term, as Jane Slater of NFL Network suggested was possible.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys don't have a ton of leverage since their plan to release the Miami native is already well-known, so getting a mid-round pick in addition to the much-needed extra cap space is an acceptable outcome.