Buffalo acquired Amari Cooper and a 2025 sixth-round pick…
Buffalo acquired Amari Cooper and a 2025 sixth-round pick from Cleveland for a 2025 third and 2026 seventh. Cooper gave the Bills 20 catches, 297 yards and two touchdowns in nine regular-season games plus modest playoff production before leaving after the season. Cleveland used the third-rounder on quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who appeared in 10 games as a rookie. The lasting rookie-contract value now tilts this trade toward the Browns.
Buffalo Bills Received
- pick Amari Cooper and 2025 6th round pick (204th overall subsequently traded, Ajani Cornelius )
Cleveland Browns Received
- pick 2025 3rd round pick (94th overall, Dillon Gabriel)
- pick 2026 7th round pick (242nd overall subsequently traded, Deven Eastern)
Trade Analysis
Buffalo made the trade in October 2024 because its receiving corps needed a proven outside target for an immediate Super Bowl push. The Bills sent Cleveland a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 seventh-rounder for Amari Cooper and a 2025 sixth. Cooper arrived with six 1,000-yard seasons on his résumé and gave Josh Allen a veteran route-runner for the second half of an MVP-caliber year.
The rental helped, but the production was modest. Cooper caught 20 passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns in nine regular-season games with Buffalo. Including the playoffs, he finished his Bills tenure with 26 receptions for 338 yards and two scores in 12 games. He caught four passes for 33 yards in the AFC Championship loss to Kansas City. Buffalo reached the conference title game, so the acquisition contributed to a legitimate championship run, but Cooper never became a high-volume centerpiece and left after the season.
Cleveland used the key piece of its return, pick No. 94 in 2025, on quarterback Dillon Gabriel. As a rookie, Gabriel appeared in 10 games and completed 110 of 185 passes for 937 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions. Those numbers did not establish him as a franchise quarterback, but they gave Cleveland meaningful evaluation time at the sport’s most valuable position while keeping him on a cheap rookie contract. The 2026 seventh-round asset was later moved.
The original B/C- grading favored Buffalo because the trade was judged primarily as a contender acquiring a recognizable receiver. With a full season of hindsight, that gap has reversed. Cooper’s stay was brief and statistically limited, while Cleveland turned the centerpiece into a young quarterback who has already played substantial snaps.
This is not a major Browns victory because Gabriel’s long-term ceiling remains uncertain and Buffalo did reach the AFC Championship. A B- for Cleveland and C+ for Buffalo captures a narrow Cleveland win based on continuing asset value rather than name recognition.