NFL Oakland Raiders

2015 NFL Draft: Pick By Pick With Oakland Raiders At No. 4

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By @rickstavig

Amari Cooper, NFL Draft

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

With the regular season now in the rearview mirror, it’s officially mock draft season. Yes, mock drafts are entirely and utterly useless. It’s all speculation loosely based on rumors and projections, with no mock draft ever being anywhere near perfect. It’s like making a bracket for the NCAA tournament: you’ll get a few right but you’ll never get them all right. Still, they’re fun to make, they’re fun to read, and it fuels hope for a good offseason and a better future for whomever you cheer for.

I had the Tampa Bay Buccaneers taking Oregon QB Marcus Mariota with the first pick of the 2015 NFL Draft, the Tennessee Titans taking Jameis Winston, (QB, Florida State) at no. 2 and the Jacksonville Jaguars taking Brandon Scherff, (OT, Iowa) third overall. Who do the Oakland Raiders take at no. 4?

Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama.

Arguably the two biggest needs for the Raiders right now is a legitimate number one receiver for second year QB Derek Carr to grow with and an effective edge rusher. With the Raiders at pick no. 4 and two of the picks in front of them being used on quarterbacks, Oakland will very likely have the pick of the litter at both WR and DE.

Randy Gregory (DE, Nebraska) and Shane Ray (DE, Missouri) are the top edge rushers and the Raiders would love to add their caliber of talent to a shuffling defensive line. After all, aside from DE Justin Tuck, who was the team’s best linemen this fall and who will be playing out the last year of a two-year deal in 2015, the cupboard is bare. But in this instance, I see the Raiders focusing on aiding the development of Carr, whom they believe could be their first franchise QB since Rich Gannon rode off into the sunset more than a decade ago.

It’s no secret that once you find your franchise QB, the next steps are to A) protect him and B) surround him with weapons. Could the Raiders use some help up front? Of course. But there really isn’t an OT worth this pick and the Raiders surprisingly were solid in pass pro last year. Which leads us to Cooper, the most NFL-ready receiver in this class.

Cooper (6-foot 1, 215-pounds) isn’t on an elite level when it comes to size or speed, but he simply does everything very, very well. He has excellent quickness and burst, gets impressive separation and understands how to read coverages. He’s known for acrobatic catches and making big plays in big moments, but he does need to work on the consistency of his hands (as does every nearly receiver transitioning to the NFL). He’s exactly the type of natural pass catcher Carr and the Raiders are yearning for.

Cooper would enter a receiving corps devoid of any reliable pass catchers. James Jones and Andre Holmes are average complimentary receiving threats, but neither will force a defense to gameplan around them. Denarius Moore is a free agent and was buried on the depth chart by seasons end, and Brice Butler and Kenbrell Thompkins are average to below-average talents at best.

It’s hard for a QB to develop without someone reliable to get the ball to. Carr looked like he could be a winner last year even when he was throwing to subpar receivers, so just imagine what he could do if he had guys who knew how to get open and make plays.

Rick Stavig is an NFL Draft Columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @rickstavig or add him to your network on Google+.

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