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Heading into the 2025 offseason, the New Orleans Saints knew they needed to bolster their wide receiver group. Their situation wasn’t ideal—Marquez Valdes-Scantling left for the Seattle Seahawks, and their top wideout, Chris Olave, has struggled with injuries throughout his career.
To address this, the Saints brought in Brandin Cooks, a familiar face with plenty of speed. But some analysts, including Pro Football Focus’ Zoltan Buday, believe New Orleans should make another move—this time for veteran receiver Amari Cooper, who most recently played for the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns.
Would Cooper be a good fit?
On paper, adding Cooper seems logical. The Saints lack depth at receiver, and Cooper has proven he can be a reliable target. However, his performance last season was underwhelming—he finished with a 68.7 PFF grade, ranking just 61st among 133 wide receivers. That’s a significant drop-off from his previous two seasons, when he was a top-20 receiver by PFF standards.
Despite his struggles in 2024, there are valid reasons why Cooper didn’t thrive. The Browns had a disastrous quarterback situation, with Deshaun Watson underperforming before suffering a season-ending injury. Then, after being traded to Buffalo at the deadline, Cooper never fully clicked with Josh Allen and the Bills’ offense.
Why the Saints are unlikely to sign cooper
Even though the Saints could use more receiver depth, signing Cooper doesn’t seem likely for several reasons:
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They Just Signed Brandin Cooks – With Cooks, Olave, and Rashid Shaheed already in the mix, the Saints have their top three receivers set. While they could add another depth piece, it’s unlikely they’d invest heavily in Cooper.
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Cooper Wants a Bigger Role – At this stage of his career, Cooper likely wants to be a featured receiver, not just another option in a crowded room. The Saints can’t offer him that.
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Cap Space & Financial Priorities – Cooper won’t come cheap, and the Saints need to be mindful of their salary cap situation. They have other roster needs to address before splurging on another receiver.
While adding a proven veteran like Cooper sounds good in theory, the reality is that he’s not a fit for the Saints right now. They’ve already filled their biggest need at receiver, and unless they want to shake things up even more, spending big on Cooper doesn’t make sense. He’ll likely land with a team that can guarantee him a bigger role and a bigger paycheck—and that team probably won’t be in New Orleans.