May 26, 2015; Alameda, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders receiver Amari Cooper (89) at organized team activities at the Raiders practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Going into the 2015 NFL Draft, Leonard Williams, Dante Fowler, Jameis Winston and Amari Cooper were the top prospects. Marcus Mariota was highly regarded because he is a quarterback but not perceived as pro ready as the others. And of the group, Williams was the consensus No. 1 prospect with the hype machine behind him.
In the draft, the quarterbacks go 1-2 because quarterbacks take precedence over everything. Donte Fowler goes No. 3 because the Jacksonville Jaguars were set at interior defensive line and need a edge-rusher. So Williams is right there at No. 4 for the Raiders and G.M. Reggie McKenzie believes in taking the best player available.
But Cooper ended up being the guy as NFL Network’s Steve Wyche told Raiders.com, “Arguably, he’s [Cooper] the best player in the draft. He can go deep, he can catch the hitch and go, you talk about Swiss army knife, the five tool guy, but he also blocks. There’s a reason why Alabama’s run game is so successful, their receivers are blocking downfield.”
What makes a top prospect is production, athletic traits, intangibles, pro readiness, and upside. There is no such things as having so much of one of these things that it trumps everything else. So I decided to measure all of these things in Cooper against the other top prospects in the draft.
Turn the page to see what I came up with.
Next: Cooper vs Fowler