One of the biggest questions heading into 2019’s NFL free agency is, ‘what should the Oakland Raiders do with Jared Cook?’
If Cook were to be shown the door, the tight end position would be an obvious immediate need. The question is, should the Raiders pay for Cook or draft a younger option?
If Oakland elects to draft a tight end, it may look nice in the pocketbooks but quarterback Derek Carr will have to find a new safety blanket. Cook was able to provide stability and consistency and Carr relied on him time and time again.
In terms of Fantasy Football, Pro Football Focus recently shared a Tweet showing that 2018 was by far the best year for the TE position in Oakland over the last decade.
Was the Jared Cook breakout for real? pic.twitter.com/CLGBd6HK8Z
— PFF Fantasy Football (@PFF_Fantasy) February 26, 2019
Raider Nation knows addressing the defense will be a priority this year at the draft and there’s no arguing that. With that said, there are other options at tight end that will be available in the later rounds such as Foster Moreau out of LSU.
Raider Nation, what’s your stance? Should Gruden and Mayock draft a tight end or do they go the safe route and pay for what hopefully wasn’t a fluke year for Cook?
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Definitely look to resigning Cook to a cap friendly deal… front loaded monies in case there’s a significant drop off in production
PAY THE MAN!!! Our WR room is almost empty and Jared is one of the best Receiving TEs in the league. Keeping Carr’s security blanket will open the field for the new wideouts we pick up. We have plenty of cap space to keep a few guys and Cook should definitely be one of them.
I say resign Cook, he has rapport with Carr already and was by far our most consistent offensive weapon, we need some roster stability. We have too many holes across the board to use a valuable draft pick on a TE. Sign Cook, draft a late TE to develop or wait till 2020.
If Cook was 26 I would pay. I would go the cheaper route with a F.A. bargain or draft one with potential but not the top 3 picks. If someone were there with the 2nd rounder they didnt expect then I say do it. I would like to see all defense with the top 3 picks. Edge, DL, and LB or CB. Obviously winning just 1 less meaningless game would have guaranteed us one of the top 3 day 1 starters. I fully expect Gruden to not listen much to Mayock and f*** up the #4 pick anyway. If we could trade down to 7 or 8 get an extra pick and still nab Ferrell, or Sweat that would be even better unless one of the top 3 slip to 4
draft a tight end
Pay him and bring back King Crab
Keep Cook. He’s got great hands and is a difficult match up for defenses.
Cook stays.
I’d say keep Jared Cook but I think he’s going to come at a hefty price, but on the other hand,II think that they need to keep some sort of foundation with this team ?!
Tag him and look for a cap friendly deal, restructuring teams do not overpay old stars
Tag him and look for a team friendly deal, rebuilding teams do not over pay aging veterans
Pay the Man ! He was the most consistent player on our team last year.
His intensity and skill were responsible for at least 2 of the wins last year. He out played most of the league and hardly missed any catchable passes. He has a veteran presence that we need. I say keep him a Raider until he can’t play anymore!
Keep Cook, don’t fix it if it isn’t broke