Should fantasy managers be concerned with Amari Cooper's minicamp absence?

The 2024 fantasy football season is still months from getting underway but Amari Cooper has already given managers potential reasons to worry about his seasonal outlook. In a report from Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN, the team's leading receiver did not attend their preseason minicamp on June 11.

Entering his 11th season as a professional, Cooper is set to begin his third season in Cleveland after being traded from Dallas in 2022. By the time September rolls around, the 29-year-old will be in the final year of his current five-year, $100 million deal.

Per Oyefusi, the Browns and Cooper's agent have engaged in a "dialogue," suggesting that the receiver is likely either in search of a lucrative contract extension.

Amari Cooper 2023 production

In his second season with Cleveland, Cooper appeared in 15 games, putting up his second straight 1,000-yard campaign. Per FantasyPros, Cooper finished as the 16th-best receiver in standard formats while ranking 18th in half-PPR leagues and 20th in full-PPR formats.

While the yard total was a career-high for Cooper, he ended the year with just five touchdowns, his fewest since 2020. His 72 receptions were also his fewest since 2018, a year in which he appeared in just nine games.

Though he was brought in around the same time as DeShaun Watson, the two stars have only played in 12 games together. Watson missed most of 2022 due to a suspension and took the field just six times in 2023 before going down with a shoulder injury.

Quarterback play has often been an issue for Cooper in Cleveland but he has still produced two of his best fantasy seasons since joining the team.

What Amari Cooper's potential holdout would mean in fantasy football

Cooper's absence to begin the Browns' minicamp was a noteworthy report in the dark days of the NFL offseason but it is a move that has done on hundreds of occasions in the past. Especially given the respect receivers have seen in the 2024 offseason, the five-time Pro Bowler was expected to push for an extension.

With his age-30 season around the corner, Cooper is coming off arguably the best year of his career. The Browns added Jerry Jeudy in the offseason but the Alabama product is still the key engine of their offense, particularly given the uncertainty surrounding Nick Chubb and his return from injury.

In similar moves in the past, one of two outcomes have typically resulted. Cooper will either be given the extension he desires, or he will request a trade and be dealt in a blockbuster move before the preseason begins. Expect Cleveland to pay their star player.