The trade was also about saving Daks career.
Where would we be with Dak if 2018 finished how it begun without Amari? 3 straight seasons without making playoffs.
I think the trade was twofolds in saving Dak , the season and potentially being the piece needed for a deeper run. I’m not sure it was intended to be long term.
That's a hindsight viewpoint because In 2018 it would have only been 2 straight seasons if we hadn't made the playoffs - we didn't yet know about 2019.
As for it not being for long term, I disagree with that. First because Jerry is very protective of his high draft picks, and the team has been very committed to building through the draft over the last 5-6 years, therefore it seems unlikely the trade would have been made if they didn't think Cooper could be a building block. In addition, how could the trade have been just to get a short term piece for a deeper run when at the time of the trade the Cowboys were 3-4 and even making the playoffs at all was in doubt? It seems much more likely to me that the trade was made because the team realized that it had screwed up and let the WR group go to hell in a handbasket and they desperately needed to address the situation.
Finally, what would be the point of "saving Dak" if they didn't think Dak was the right guy for the job and needed receivers to help him and the Cowboys win games? There would be no incentive simply to "save Dak" just for the hell of it. The point would have been to build a team around him that the Cowboys could be successful with, which obviously is about more than just Dak.