Raiders’ top pick under a cloud
The top linebacker in the NFL draft, Reuben Foster, was available to the linebackerbarren Raiders at the No. 24 pick. But they went with another player with red flags instead Thursday night.
Oakland selected Ohio State cornerback Gareon Conley in the first round, even though he has been accused of raping a woman April 9 in a Cleveland hotel room.
Conley, 21, has not been charged or arrested in connection with the alleged incident, according to the Cleveland Police Department. No warrant has been issued and the department’s sex-crimes unit is investigating.
Conley, in a conference call, strongly denied the accusation
and said he is scheduled to meet with Cleveland Police on Monday. He is “confident it will get resolved.”
“We did our due diligence,” Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie said, “and we trust our research on Mr. Conley. We feel really good about picking him.”
Listed at 6-foot, 195 pounds, Conley had 26 tackles, eight passes defensed and four interceptions in 2016.
Foster, the Butkus Award winner for the top college linebacker, fell because of reports that his shoulder didn’t check out, on top of a diluted urine sample, on top of an argument with a hospital worker that had him sent home from the NFL combine. The 49ers traded up to select Foster with the 31st pick.
McKenzie said Conley was his man, despite the allegations. McKenzie was asked if he was told that charges wouldn’t be pressed against Conley.
“I don’t want to get into it but we feel really good about this pick.”
Head coach Jack Del Rio called Conley “a football junkie and a really good kid,”
On the field, the team captain was named second-team All-Big Ten. Conley has the longest arms (33 inches) of the top cornerbacks in the draft, and one scout said he has a “short-area burst, likes to jump routes and he can track the ball deep.”
The Raiders probably will plug him in at slot cornerback — replacing DJ Hayden, the team’s last first-round cornerback pick (2013) — as they already have starters Sean Smith and David Amerson manning the outside spots.
Conley “is the type of cornerback you look for,” McKenzie said. “It’s hard to get separation from him.”
ESPN, citing a police report, reported that a 23-year-old woman claims she met Conley in an elevator. The report also includes the claim that Conley had sex with the woman and kicked her out of his hotel room after she declined to have group sex, according to ESPN.
Conley told police that there were several witnesses and “video evidence that further discredit and disprove other versions of these events.”
In the conference call, Conley said he “could have made a way better decision” to avoid getting himself in that situation.
“I appreciate the Raiders having faith in me not only as a player but as a person,” Conley said. “I am honored to be a part of this organization.”
Speaking to reporters in Philadelphia on Thursday morning, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was asked how the league will handle Conley’s situation.
“We obviously will look into that,” Goodell said. “It’s a serious allegation and must be treated seriously . ... But let’s see how the facts come out.”