Washington badly wanted to sign Amari Cooper, who re-signed with the Dallas Cowboys in free agency.

"Amari was someone that we chased very hard all the way up to the very end," Ron Rivera said. "He decided to return to Dallas. We were in it and we were talking about the substantial money. But at the end of the day, he made a decision he felt was best for him and we respect it."

Cooper received $100 million over five years from Dallas.

"That's a tough one," Rivera said. "We would've loved to have him as part of what we're trying to do. We believe he would've been a great veteran presence in the room, especially for those young guys that played last year and had success with this football team. We would've felt good about having a veteran guy like that who's had success in this league as part of what you're trying to do."