Veteran wide receiver Amari Cooper retires 9 days after signing with Raiders

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper retired Thursday, a little more than a week after signing a one-year contract to return to the Las Vegas Raiders.

Raiders offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said Cooper called coach Pete Carroll on Thursday morning and gave him the news.

“It’s unfortunate because I think the world of him,” Kelly said. “I think he’s a heck of a football player. He’s had a heck of an NFL career, but he knows in his heart what he wants to do, so I wish him the best. I’ve always been a big fan of his.”

Cooper, 31, played 10 seasons for four teams and finished with 711 catches for 10,033 yards and 64 touchdowns.

He was drafted fourth in the 2015 draft by the then-Oakland Raiders.

Cooper played for the Raiders until being traded to Dallas in October 2018 for a first-round pick. He exceeded 1,000 receiving yards seven times, most recently two years ago for Cleveland, when Cooper had 72 receptions for 1,250 yards and five touchdowns.

He had 44 catches for 547 yards and four TDs last season for the Browns and Buffalo Bills.

When he met with reporters last week, Cooper said he wanted to prove he remained one of the league’s top receivers.

“Trust me, I still have some juice left,” Cooper said at the time. “I felt like this was the opportunity for me to show it.”

How much Cooper would have been part of the offense remained to be seen.

“Amari’s done well so far,” Carroll said Wednesday. “We just want to get through some more practices. We just haven’t had that much time yet.”

Kelly said the coaches still were finalizing their plan for how they will use their receivers in Sunday’s season opener at New England.

“We hadn’t made any final decisions on whether (Cooper) was going to play in the first game,” Kelly said. “He was training with us and got reps. You’re not making your usual 48-man roster until Saturday anyway, so we hadn’t had any discussions.”

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

By MARK ANDERSON
AP Sports Writer