Who Should I Start? Amari Cooper or Christian Kirk

Thursday, September 4, 2:14 PM

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper has informed the team that he intends to retire ahead of Week 1, citing a lack of desire to continue playing. Cooper, who joined the Raiders this offseason in hopes of competing for a starting role, was listed behind rookie Dont'e Thornton Jr. on the initial depth chart. The five-time Pro Bowler spent last season with the Browns and Bills, starting 10 of 14 games while recording 44 catches for 547 yards and four touchdowns. Cooper leaves the NFL after a decorated career, finishing with over 10,000 receiving yards and 64 touchdowns across stops with the Raiders, Cowboys, Browns, and Bills. His departure opens additional opportunities for Thornton and fellow rookie Jack Bech to carve out meaningful roles in the Raiders' passing game this season.

Friday, December 12, 10:33 PM

Houston Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk has struggled with injuries in his first season with the Texans, and he has been in a minimal role coming into his Week 15 matchup against his former team, the Cardinals. Kirk played only 25 snaps (36%) last week in a big game against the Chiefs and caught only one of his three targets for six yards. Kirk did flash upside with five catches for 56 yards and a touchdown in Week 12 against the Bills, but he has only one catch in the two games since C.J. Stroud has been back at quarterback. With rookie Jayden Higgins as the team's second receiver and Nico Collins dominating the target share, Kirk is left sharing time in the slot with rookie Jaylin Noel. Even though he'll be facing his former team, he's only the WR77 in RotoBaller's rankings, so he can be left on the waiver wire in most standard-sized formats for this week.