Riley Cooper, Wide Receiver, Philadelphia Eagles

NFL Experience: 4 Years

Drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in Round 5

College: Florida

                                             2013 Statistics

Games             Rec                  Yards              AVG               Points

16                    47                     833                18                  137.10

Best Performance

Week 9 AT- Oakland Raiders: Five receptions, 139 yards and three touchdowns

What a scorcher of a game this was as the Eagles burned the Raiders who were playing at home 49-20. Cooper, with just five receptions averaged nearly 28 yards per catch, and caught three, yes, three receiving touchdowns. Besides one other significant fantasy week prior to this, Cooper had been pretty quiet. Fantasy owners who tossed a coin over starting him this week and did, they were surely jumping for joy over his 40 plus fantasy points in this great win for the Eagles.

Best Four-Game Stretch

Weeks 7-10: 16 receptions, 342 yards, and five touchdowns

85.5 yards averaged per game was not too shabby of a stretch of play for the 22nd ranked receiver of 2013. Cooper and quarterback, Nick Foles, had really been starting to synch during the mid-season. Coincidentally, the Eagles won two of their road games, but lost at home against the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants, during this period of time.

Cooper, along with his team clearly played better on the road than at home. Fantasy owners who acquired Cooper, hopefully followed this pattern and if they did, they had a reliable flex option in Cooper most weeks.

Lowest Statistical Standpoint

Week 5, AT New York Giants: one target, zero receptions, zero touchdowns

Well, it really doesn’t get much gloomier than this, as Cooper was virtually non-existent in his Week 5 game against the Giants. Targeted only once and held without a catch at least the Eagles claimed a victory, once again on the road at Met Life Stadium, 36-21. If you started Cooper in your fantasy lineup, you got a big, fat goose egg.

2013 Season at a Glance

Cooper finished 2013 ranked at a modest 22nd among wide receivers. While this isn’t exactly a wow-factor, keep in mind he ranked ahead of many name brand receivers such as Marques Colston, Wes Welker, and Mike Wallace, who were all drafted many rounds ahead of Cooper, if he even was picked at all.

If you acquired Cooper from the waiver wires, he was a hit and miss guy, but he did have some huge weeks where he rewarded fantasy owners sweetly. Overall, Cooper was worth stashing on fantasy rosters because of his big play ability and his flourishing connection with Foles at center.

2014 Outlook

Apparently the Eagles are happy with Cooper as he just inked a new four-year contract with his team. However, fellow wide receiver, former first round draft pick from 2009, Jeremy Maclin is close to signing a deal with the Eagles also. If Maclin stays, someone will take a backseat as we cannot discount DeSean Jackson, who performed quite remarkably as the No. 1 receiver for the team last year.

Remember that Maclin is coming off of ACL surgery after missing the last whole season, and Cooper is fresh and healthy. Jackson likely is in line for the No. 1 role, so we will have to see what Chip Kelly's plans are for filling in the blanks after Jackson.

Even if Cooper resumes his position as the No. 2 receiver, he would likely post numbers similar to last season, making him a solid flex pick in 2014 fantasy drafts.

Next Up: #94, DeAngelo Williams, Running Back, Carolina Panthers