Why newly-crowned NFC Player of the Week Amari Cooper has fit in so fast with Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys receiver Amari Cooper has been named the NFC offensive player of the week after his breakout performance in a 31-24 win over the Washington Redskins on Thanksgiving Day.

Cooper caught eight passes for 180 yards and streaking touchdowns of 40 and 90 yards to help put the Cowboys (6-5) in first place in the NFC East.

It was exactly the type of performance the Cowboys were hoping for when they acquired Cooper in a bye-week trade from the Oakland Raiders in exchange for a 2019 first-round draft pick.

Cooper has revitalized the Cowboys passing game, given quarterback Dak Prescott more confidence and opened things up for running back Ezekiel Elliott on the ground for a team that is riding a three-game winning streak and playing its best football heading into Thursday’s game against the New Orleans Saints (10-1).

Owner Jerry Jones and Prescott pointed toward Cooper’s athleticism, talent and a concerted effort by the coaches to get him involved as reasons he has made such a quick impact.

Jones called him “as good a route runner as has ever put on a Dallas Cowboy uniform. And he’s running himself -- he’s route-running himself open.”

And he already has no regrets about it being “a lonely first round” when the 2019 NFL Draft rolls around in the spring.

“It is not surprising,” Jones said on his radio show on 105.3 the Fan about Cooper gaining chemistry with Prescott so quickly. “What I’m really pleased is that our coaches are designing it and he’s following through with his preparation and his coordination with Dak. But the coaches are putting him in a spot to have him have that success, and I think that’s big and telling for where we are right now. I’ve always been on top and pushing coaches to adjust their schemes for their players. A lot of coaches will give lip service to that and not be as adjustable in their scheme as others. These guys, [offensive coordinator Scott] Linehan, they’ve designed things that really give Cooper a chance.”

Added Prescott: “He is a great player. When you are a great player like him and you get separation and run routes, it makes my job easy. So when you have that, give credit to him. You saw [against the Redskins] just the type of player he is and what he can do. He comes into this locker room and brings that confidence or, you say, ‘swagger,’ about himself. He has confidence in the guys here just the way we practice and the way we do things. He bought in. This is a tight team. We have definitely taken him like he is one of us and has been here all year. Credit him for coming in with a great mindset.”

Prescott said there have been no challenges in connecting with Cooper because of his attitude, mindset, and willingness to learn. He and Cooper have had a running discussion of likes, dislikes since the day he landed in Dallas.

“There really weren’t, and I credit him,” Prescott said. “As I said, we sit one seat away from each other in the meeting room. We’re always talking. He’s pulling up film ‘I’m going to do this, because the defender plays this way.’ This, this and that. As I said, when you have a player that runs the routes and prepares the way he does, he makes it much easier.”

The easier is best explained by the numbers starting with the unmistakable fact that the Cowboys are 3-1 with Cooper and 3-4 without him while scoring 24 points per game after and 20 before.

Prescott has completed 70 percent of his passes over the last four games with Cooper compared to 62 percent before.

He is also averaging 252 yards passing per game with Cooper compared to 202 before. And his quarterback rating has gone from 87.4 to 102.4 with Cooper. It is a whopping 126 when specifically targeting Cooper.

It all came together against the Redskins in a performance that earned Cooper NFC Player of the Week honors.

Can he duplicate it against the Saints Thursday?

This story was originally published November 28, 2018 at 2:19 PM.