3 possible outcomes to Amari Cooper holdout with Browns

The Cleveland Browns officially have a situation on their hands.

Star wide receiver Amari Cooper is not present for mandatory minicamp, and his reasoning is justifiable.

Cooper is entering the final year of his contract and his peers are seeing nothing but dollar signs, lately. With deals signed by Justin Jefferson, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jaylen Waddle, etc., Cooper feels as though it's time he gets another deal done.

But, how will this all play out? Is Cooper going to play just one more season for the Browns? What options are there?

Amari Cooper's holdout with the Browns will likely end one of three ways

1. The Browns and Cooper get a deal done sooner rather than later

Because Cooper's desire for a new deal is more than reasonable, the likely outcome is that he and the Browns come to an agreement on an extension. His two years in Cleveland, he's totaled 150 receptions on 260 targets, 2,410 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns.

Without Cooper, it's Jerry Jeudy and Elijah Moore as the next two up. And, oh by the way, Jeudy just got paid and hasn't played a down for the Browns yet. That's not a good look to a guy like Cooper, who has been a model of consistency.

2. Cooper holds out until last minute, plays the final year of his contract, becomes a free agent in 2025

The Browns might also not want to pay up before the 2024 season and, instead, hope to re-evaluate the situation next offseason. At first, Cooper wouldn't take that news too well. He could hold out throughout the summer and refuse to show at team activities or training camp.

But, when it's all said and done, it would be the worst thing for Cooper to sit out his age-30 season in hopes he can figure this out next offseason. He'd end up playing, begrudgingly, and hit free agency next spring.

3. The Browns don't want to pay up and trade Cooper

If Cooper truly isn't in the future plans of Cleveland (and that wouldn't be wise from an organizational perspective) then they could try to trade him. A guy on the last year of his deal, though, wouldn't fetch a whole lot. It doesn't matter that Cooper has produced two strong years with the Browns. Teams don't want to part with significant draft capital for a one-year rental. It simply won't happen.

If the Browns traded Cooper, though, that prospective team would probably be ready and willing to extend Cooper. So, maybe that changes things a bit. If it were a team like the Chiefs, Cooper might not expect to get an extension, but he'd play out the year with an expectation of winning a Super Bowl ring -- fair trade.

Whether he's extended, traded or the situation takes a while to unfold, keep it locked in here and we'll continue to update Cooper's contract conundrum and status with the team.