Gil Brandt, former vice president of player personnel for the Dallas Cowboys, joined Dennis and Cowlishaw on KESN-FM 103.3 ESPN on Tuesday to talk about the Amari Cooper trade. Here are some highlights:
On the Cowboys' acquisition of Amari Cooper
Brandt: He was my third-ranked player when he came up for the draft. He's 6-1, 210 pounds and ran a 4.3 at the combine. I try to find out and put my listed order so I can look ahead to the 2019 draft as early as possible. I've got 50 players in order of where I think they'll go. My top-ranked wide receiver is 25. There are a lot of good receivers in this draft. But they will be second- and third-round picks. What you have done is you have got a player, that's only four months older than the first-round pick of the Atlanta Falcons, that has four years of experience. They got a player a year ahead of time, they gave up a first-round choice for somebody they would have taken in the draft anyway, but would have been of lesser value than what you have right now.
On if the Cowboys paid too much for Cooper
Brandt: I don't feel that you overpaid when you do it the way I did it, as to where he would have rated using the 2019 prospects. In four of the last five years, I've seen him work out with the Raiders in California. He's going to make some great catches. He's going to make some drops. He has a concentration point that's against him, but here's a guy that went to the Pro Bowl his first and his second year in the league, a guy who caught 114 passes his senior year from Alabama. It's a good move, but I think the fan, the player, anybody connected with the team says "they're trying to help us win." But I do not think it was excessive to use a first-round choice now for a guy you would gladly take in the first round six months from now.
On Cooper being a good talent
Brandt: That's good, and yes they're down, but the biggest thing is that he was my third-ranked player. The second thing is, I think it's a good move, because I think it makes the team, the pros, say "you know, they're really trying to do something to help us." Go and look at some of those first-round picks. Baltimore took the guy [Breshad] Perriman from Central Florida. He's not there anymore, he was a first-round pick. The wide receiver from Louisville, [DeVante] Parker, he's up for trade and I think he was the 14th player picked in the draft. You got an established guy, you're not throwing darts. You know he's young, he's never had problems off the field. And production: You don't start at Alabama if you aren't really good.
On Cooper the person
Brandt: I think he's a great person. He's a really good guy. He's the kind of person that if he tells you he's going to do something, he'll do it. It's different then than it is now, but they're giving up a draft choice a year early for someone they would have drafted anyways. I think it's a steal myself.
On if he would rather have Calvin Ridley and the first-rounder next year, or Cooper
Brandt: I think I'd rather have Vander Esch and Amari Cooper. You're always concerned when it's a one- year wonder, but then you look at him, he had over 100 tackles at Boise State, and had the most tackles against Washington State who's a pretty good team. It's probably harder to find a really good linebacker. I think this guy has the chance to be a Pro Bowl linebacker. I think it's harder to find him than it is to draft a wide receiver.
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