ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Amari Cooper‘s first reception as a Buffalo Bill resulted in six points.
While his early impact was substantial, he only played 19 snaps five days after the team acquired him from the Cleveland Browns. His role will only continue to grow when the Bills head to Seattle on Sunday.
“Yeah, of course. I mean, I think that’s why they traded for me, definitely ready for an increased role, definitely ready for more opportunities,” Cooper said Thursday when asked about being ready for more of a role. “I’m ready to pounce on it.”
After trading for Cooper last Tuesday — with the Bills as a whole facing a short week coming off “Monday Night Football” — the wide receiver had to pick up a portion of the offense in a small amount of time. It resulted in him catching four passes (on five targets, with one drop) for 66 yards and the touchdown. All of his production came in the second half.
Offensive coordinator Joe Brady noted how Cooper, 30, didn’t let the drop in the first half vs. the Tennessee Titans lead to other mistakes.
“I thought he did a good job responding,” Brady said. “Obviously, that first catch, he’s going to want back, but did a good job not letting that kind of breed mistakes, and again, speaks to kind of who he is, and having the trust and made some huge plays in the second half. And obviously you can see the impact it kind of has on the offense.”
The Bills scored 34 unanswered points, including 27 in the second half. Rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman had his first 100-yard performance, and two other pass catchers gained 50-plus yards (Dalton Kincaid and Khalil Shakir).
Cooper said that this week he is continuing to spend extra time before and after practice getting the game plan down.
“Just hearing it more, seeing the plays more,” he said. “That’s pretty much it, doing that, obviously communicating with Josh [Allen], everybody else.”
The 10-year veteran said the communication with his new quarterback has gone well and that they are working on adapting to each other’s styles. And while they are playing “catch up” to the work that normally would be done earlier in the year and preseason, there is some natural chemistry between them. The handshake, however, that Allen has with each of his receivers remains a work in progress; Cooper explained that takes a bit of time.
“Trying to get as much time as possible with him, talking about little nuances in our game plan,” Allen said of working with Cooper for a full game week. “Things that I like to see and vice versa. Just trying to get on the same page. But again, his professionalism is through the room. He’s always working on his craft. He’s easy to talk to about what he likes. I’m excited to see what we can do.”
