It hasn’t taken long for wide receiver Amari Cooper to make a positive impression on his coaches and teammates.
At the three-day Raiders rookie minicamp last week, Cooper – the team’s No. 1 draft choice and the NFL's No. 4 overall selection – showed off his good hands, solid route-running skills and ability to get past defenders.
“It went exactly how I thought it would go,” Cooper said after his first practice as a pro. “It went pretty good. I made a couple of plays. We looked good out there as a team.”
Of course, it’s hard to extrapolate too much, because Cooper was lined up against fellow drafted rookies and free agents. He wasn’t catching passes from Derek Carr or trying to beat safety Charles Woodson over the middle.
But head coach Jack Del Rio and his staff liked what they saw – even if they’re trying to remain low key and keep Cooper focused on the fact he has much to learn about the NFL game after starring at Alabama.
“He’s going to be a good player,” Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio told Bay Area reporters after Cooper’s first day on the field. “He’s just coming in getting started like all the rest of them. He’s a young man transitioning into the league. There’s a lot of work to do. It’s good to have him here and participating.”
One of the factors Cooper has in his favor should be new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave, who plans to tailor his system to the talent he has. After working for the Philadelphia Eagles last season under head coach Chip Kelly, Musgrave is bringing elements of that system – a no-huddle, uptempo scheme – to the Raiders, hoping to put quarterback Carr and players such as Cooper in positions where they can best succeed.
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“We’re looking forward to getting out on the field in the spring and really finding out where their strengths lie,” Musgrave said recently. “We talked about tailoring our system to fit them.”
One of the things Musgrave will have in 2015 is a potentially strong receiving corps, with Cooper, ex-49er Michael Crabtree, Rod Streater and Andre Holmes.
How successful can Cooper be in his rookie season? One writer, Jonathan George of the NFL Spin Zone, projects Cooper for 67 catches for 855 yards and seven touchdowns. Those numbers would be close to the ones posted by Sammy Watkins, the top wideout taken in the 2014 draft by Buffalo. Watkins had 65 catches for 982 yards and six touchdowns.
But last season, several rookie receivers made much bigger impacts than that.
Odell Beckham Jr. of the Giants had 91 catches for 1,305 yards and 12 TDs; Mike Evans of the Bucs had 68 catches for 1,051 yard and 12 TDs; and Kelvin Benjamin of Carolina had 73 catches for 1,008 yards and nine scores.
Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie is convinced that Cooper, who just signed a four-year deal worth $22.7 million, will be a success.
“His skill set, I mean, he can run a route,” said McKenzie after selecting Cooper. “It seems like he can do that with his eyes closed. He’s exceptionally quick, fast. He understands the game. You can tell the guy’s been playing football and playing that position all his life. You can tell that.”
