Leonard Williams was available with Oakland on the clock. He and Cooper have been connected to the Raiders leading up to the draft per Bleacher Report's Matt Miller. I'm sure the debate in the war room was heated, but Cooper was the consensus pick.
The coaching staff may receive more of the credit for the selection, but Reggie McKenzie signed off on it.
According to Mercurynews.com’s Jerry McDonald, the Raiders’ general manager was pleased with the choice:
The need for a wide receiver even outweighed the love of defense by general manager Reggie McKenzie and Jack Del Rio, as USC defensive tackle Leonard Williams was still on the board and would have been a tempting player to team with last year's top pick Khalil Mack.
McKenzie was pleased that the Raiders' highest-rated player also came in an area where the team needs help.
It's very nice when it goes hand in hand," McKenzie said. "You get a great player and he fits one of the needs. It was great when that fell into place."
The Raiders’ first selection could be an indication positional need will outweigh the best-player-available approach at the top of the draft.
We’ll examine how selecting Cooper affects the remaining draft selections.
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Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
