Since when can’t contract and performance be tied together ? And in his case they certainly are. His performance ain’t good enough for the contract. I’d take Lockett AND his talent AND his contract over Cooper every time.
You'd need Lockett's QB in order to get his production.
That QB is in Denver now. Also, you'd need the monster WR,
DK Metcalf, as well to pull coverage away from him.
Lockett is a product of talent around him.
Cooper is the talent that produces openings for players
like Lockett, who is a very good player.
Now, if you include Metcalf, sure, but now that's 3 players
to replace what you already had with Cooper.
Plus, you'd need an OC to call plays that get the ball to him.
I'll defer to a 3-time SB Champion QB who said
sometimes you throw away the game plan if the defensive
coverage can be beat by one guy who might end up with 10
catches by halftime if they stay in that defensive alignment.
Dallas has not, does not and will not do that for some reason.