IN SPORTS: RAIDERS’ COOPER HEADED TO DALLAS
ALAMEDA — It happened early in practice Monday, with a member of the Raiders’ support staff coming out to escort Amari Cooper off the practice field.
“They be calling him the grim reaper,” running back Jalen Richard said. “He just came and grabbed him.”
The Dallas Cowboys offered a first-round draft pick in 2019, and the Raiders ended a week’s worth of rumors and intrigue by trading a receiver coach Jon Gruden had labeled a “centerpiece” of a retooled offense.
Cooper was not present in the locker room during the media window — his belongings were still in his locker. Gruden was unavailable for comment but told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen “I hate to see good players go. I was on the practice field when (general manager Reggie McKenzie) came to me and said the Cowboys would do this for a No. 1 and I said let’s do it. We now have five No. 1 picks in the next two years so I’m excited about that.”
McKenzie said he had fielded offers for Cooper but was not interested in a deal until Dallas executive vice president Stephen Jones offered a first-round pick.
“He wanted the player, and he gave me the pick,” McKenzie said. “And that’s what it came down to.”
The Raiders at present have three first-round draft picks in 2019, their own plus one of two they received from the Chicago Bears for defensive end Khalil Mack on Sept. 1.
Cooper, 24, departs having never ascended to the heights the Raiders hoped for when they made him the No. 4 overall pick out of Alabama in 2015. With 22 receptions for 280 yards and one touchdown, Cooper is the Raiders’ thirdleading receiver behind tight end Jared Cook (30 receptions, 390 yards) and Richard (24 receptions, 205 yards).
Scheduled to make $13.9 million next season on the fifth-year option of his original contract, Cooper is represented by Joel Segal — the same agent who orchestrated Mack’s trade from the Raiders to the Bears.
He leaves a legacy of being spectacular on occasion but wildly inconsistent in terms of production. Cooper had games where he repeatedly made big plays interspersed with many others where he was invisible, either not open or not an intended receiver.
“I still think he’s a firstround player. That’s why I had to get a first-round pick,” McKenzie said. “Now, he’s been inconsistent. Absolutely. But has he shown greatness? Absolutely. The consistency is something I am sure he has worked on and this guy is still a young player, you know. I think he’s going to do well in Dallas.”
Even with a handful of dropped passes, Cooper in his first two years looked on track to be a big producer, catching 72 passes for 1,070 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie and then 84 catches for 1,153 yards and five scores in 2016. Although he tailed off late in both seasons, Cooper made the Pro Bowl each time.
Cooper fell off dramatically last season with 48 receptions for 680 yards and seven scores under offensive coordinator Todd Downing and the trend continued this year with Gruden running the offense.
While top-level receivers such as Antonio Brown of Pittsburgh and Odell Beckham Jr. of the New York Giants are targeted on approximately 30 percent of their team’s pass plays, Cooper’s rate was less than half that this season.