Cooper finally hits his stride
Raiders quarterback Derek Carr took note this week of NBA star LeBron James making a rare start at point guard. James’ versatility reminded Carr of one of his own teammates, Amari Cooper.
James “knows all the sets, he knows all the plays,” Carr said. “Amari’s the same kind mentally.”
Cooper’s knowledge of the Raiders’ playbook, Carr said, allows him to play different receiver positions — something that proved key in Cooper’s breakout game against the Chiefs.
The Raiders lined up Cooper in the slot far more than usual last Thursday, and it helped spring the struggling receiver to a career day of 11 catches, 210 yards and two touchdowns. On Wednesday, he was named the AFC’s Offensive Player of the Week.
Cooper was in the slot on 11 of 19 plays on which he was targeted, per Pro Football Focus, catch-
ing six passes for 95 yards and a touchdown. The TD was Cooper’s second of the game, a 45-yard play late in the first quarter. With Oakland in a fourreceiver set, Cooper lined up in the left slot, inside of Seth Roberts, and ran a crossing route between the second and third levels of the Chiefs’ defense.
Cooper caught Carr’s pass at the 30, turned upfield and outran safety Eric Murray to the end zone.
“We definitely try and have something planned where (Cooper is) all over the place,” Carr said. “It makes it easier on me because I don’t focus on, ‘He’s in this spot, I gotta get him this ball.’
“When we move him inside, he can do certain things. And then when we move him back outside, the structure (of the defense) looks different. … Just playing that game with him really helps our offense.”
That figures to be part of the chess match Sunday against a Buffalo secondary that has emerged as a strength. The Bills have held opposing quarterbacks to a 75.2 passer rating, fifth-lowest in the league, and are tied for the third-most interceptions with nine.
Cooper said there’s also an individual benefit to lining up at different spots.
“You go up against different players throughout the game,” Cooper said. “If you’re constantly on one side and you keep going against the same player, a smart player would learn your moves. But if you’re going against all three guys, you can use the same moves sometimes.”
That doesn’t mean it’s easier to move around. Cooper has to know the game plan each week from different positions, which means copious studying.
“That’s very important, because you have to have that spatial awareness,” he said. “If you only know your route, then you don’t really have that awareness. If you know the guy’s route next to you, then you know how much space you really have to work with.”
Told that Carr had likened his knowledge to that of James, the four-time NBA MVP, Cooper grinned and said: “I think it was hyperbole.”
Not overstated is the fact that Carr directed 19 of his 52 passes Thursday toward Cooper, who entered the game with 18 catches for 146 yards on the season. That included nine catches for 51 yards during the Raiders’ four-game losing streak, numbers that reflected Cooper’s trouble with drops and Oakland’s sometime inability to involve him in the offense.
Carr maintained Wednesday that he was following the scheme and not seeking out Cooper on his reads. Head coach Jack Del Rio declined to talk about “strategy stuff,” but said Cooper had not seemed discouraged by his lack of production.
“I think he stayed ready to go,” Del Rio said. “I’ve been watching him for a long time, too. And he’s a really good player. So to me, he got back to being himself. And I thought we did a good job getting him incorporated, which I’d like to see continue.”