The last time the Texans faced Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper, they couldn’t stop him. In Saturday’s wild-card weekend rematch from last month, the Texans will have to face Cooper again.
The five-time Pro Bowl selection confirmed Wednesday that he’s ready to play after sitting the last two games with a heel injury. Cooper said he could’ve played in Sunday’s game against the Bengals, but the Browns rested most of their starters with the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs already clinched.
“It’s getting better every day,” Cooper said Wednesday of the heel. “I’m running around now. Just a typical injury that you have to work through.”
On Dec. 24, in Cleveland’s 36-22 victory over the Texans, Cooper set a Browns record with 265 receiving yards. He also had 11 receptions and two touchdowns.
In that game, the Texans played zone coverage almost 87% of time, according to Next Gen Stats, which Browns quarterback Joe Flacco exploited with several big throws to Cooper.
Cooper said he doesn’t know how the Texans might change up their defense for the rematch. But he does expect Houston to defend him differently.