Amari Cooper claims Jon Gruden wasn't looped in on his trade to Cowboys
The narrative on the Amari Cooper trade to the Dallas Cowboys has quickly shifted.
What seemed a good value for the Oakland Raiders when they received a first-round pick from the Cowboys for the talented but inconsistent wide receiver is starting to look like a steal for Dallas.
Since joining Dallas, Cooper has tallied 642 yards and six touchdowns in six games while playing a key role in the Cowboys’ five-game winning streak.
Cooper: Mark Davis made the call
The assumption when the deal was made was that first-year Oakland head coach Jon Gruden was behind it as he looks to reshape the team in his vision. But according to Cooper, the decision was all owner Mark Davis.
Cooper told The Fort Worth Star-Telegram that Gruden wasn’t even looped in on the deal and that then-general manager Reggie McKenzie was initially against it. But when Dallas sweetened the pot with a first-round pick in next April’s draft, Davis played his owner card, overruling his front office.
“They were getting calls about a first for next year and they weren’t going to do it,” Cooper said. “But when Jerry Jones called about a first for this year, he felt he had no choice.”
How does Cooper know what happened?
Cooper’s proclamation raises an obvious question. How does the player who was traded from the Raiders have such intimate knowledge of the workings of the deal?
The answer is, we don’t know. And we don’t know that what he’s saying is accurate. Gruden told ESPN shortly after the trade he was on board with the deal.
“I hate to see good players go, but I was on the practice field when Reggie came to me and said the Cowboys would do this for a No. 1, and I said, ‘Let’s do it,’ ” Gruden told ESPN.
What we do know is that one of the few decisions the Raiders have made this season that seemed to make sense doesn’t make that much sense anymore.
Cowboys getting big return on their investment
The Cowboys were 3-4 when they made the deal, and the promise of the pick they dealt looked like one for the top half of the first round. Now at 8-5, they appear playoff bound. And the Raiders are looking at having dealt a top-tier 24-year-old offensive talent for a back-end pick in the first round.
If Cooper is indeed the player we’ve seen the last six weeks in Dallas, he’s the kind of difference maker a team hopes to get with a top 10 pick.
Regardless of who made the call, it’s looking like another one that the Raiders will regret.
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