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How WR Amari Cooper fared in debut with Bills

Amari Cooper’s debut in a Buffalo Bills uniform had fans with all kinds of emotions with some highlight plays, good and bad.

Anthony Miller

Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
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In one of the most heavily anticipated debuts in recent club history, the Buffalo Bills rolled out wide receiver Amari Cooper for their Week 7 clash with the Tennessee Titans, his first appearance coming just five days after his acquisition from the Cleveland Browns. His outing wasn't flawless, but he gave fans exactly what they wanted.

It started early, with quarterback Josh Allen looking in Cooper’s direction on third and one; he failed to reel in the pass to tally what would be his 11th drop of the season, forcing Buffalo to punt on the game's opening possession. Later in the first half, Cooper would come up hobbling with what looked like a hamstring injury that would see him in and out of the lineup.

Cooper's early game concerns would change in the third quarter when Allen hit the veteran on a nice route for a 12-yard touchdown catch; it was the five-time Pro Bowler's first catch as a Bill, and it gave Buffalo its first lead of the day.

On the next drive, Allen again hit Cooper on a deep route to the left for 19 yards inside the Tennessee 30-yard line. That led to a Tyler Bass field goal to increase the Bills lead to 17-10.

Related: LOOK: Several Bills wear hilarious Josh Allen shirts ahead of Week 7 clash vs. Titans

The connection between Allen and Cooper appeared to be in almost mid-season late in the third quarter, as the two had their longest play of the game, a 27-yard completion. Allen hit Cooper for a first down, but Cooper would run for another 10-15 yards after the catch. The Bills would score another touchdown on the drive to give them a 24-10 lead.

Cooper would make one last catch in the game as he caught another Allen short pass for eight yards that converted into a first down. Points also came from this drive, with Bass hitting a second field goal for a 27-10 lead.

The Bills ultimately won in what proved to be a 34-10 blowout of the Titans. Cooper had four receptions on five targets for 66 yards and one touchdown in his debut.

Amari Coope
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One aspect of Cooper's play that helped was the attention he was getting from defenders. On the Ty Johnson touchdown early in the fourth quarter, Cooper was running a crossing route in the middle of the field that attracted the attention of multiple defenders, leaving Johnson open on the check down for him to score.

That also benefited Cooper’s partner in crime in wide receiver Keon Coleman, who had a career-high 125 yards. Cooper’s presence opened up the game for Buffalo's other wideouts and placed them in better positions to succeed, a perhaps overlooked benefit of his addition.

Allen was the biggest benefactor of Cooper being with the team, as he had his first 300-yard passing game of the season and had a rare 100-yard pass catcher. It took Allen until the beginning of the second half to get it going, but once Cooper had that first catch, the passing game was rolling.

It wasn’t a perfect debut for Cooper, but the Bills must be happy about how he performed and the potential for Buffalo’s offense with him in it.

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Anthony Miller
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