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A season-ending knee injury to Jeremy Maclin opened the way for Riley Cooper to fantasy football relevance in 2013. After Cooper was given the opportunity to start, he became a reliable receiver in fantasy leagues. While he is not a possession receiver, Cooper usually brings in around three passes a game. Despite having only 47 catches in 2013, Cooper is an end zone threat. At 6-foot-3, Cooper can go up and come down with the football. The Florida product is not a must-start player every week, but if you’re in need of a receiver because of bye weeks, Cooper is a solid plug-and-play type of guy.
When Nick Foles is on his game, Cooper benefits greatly. For example, in their Week 9 matchup against the Oakland Raiders, Cooper caught five passes for 139 yards and three touchdowns. He had another great performance in Week 10 against the Green Bay Packers when he caught five passes for 102 yards and two touchdowns.
With all of this being said, Cooper is a solid guy to target when you need to find some receivers who can fill the bench roles. The Philadelphia Eagles spread the ball a lot and that is detrimental towards Cooper’s production, but the Eagles have one of the best offenses in the league and Cooper is a guy who can explode in any given week.
With Maclin coming back, many fantasy football players will probably be hesitant to draft Cooper. I’m buying Cooper for the 2014 season. I say this because Cooper is a big receiver and he can bring down touchdowns with ease. The Eagles will be playing six games in the NFC East and Cooper has a history at carving up those secondaries. Playing him every week is extremely risky, but Cooper is a solid bench player in all leagues.
Ryan Ratty is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @RyanRattyNFL or add him to your network on Google.
