Oakland Raiders: The Good and The Bad of Each Free Agent Signing

E.J. Manuel

The injury to Derek Carr in Week 16 made the end of the Raiders’ 2016 season all but official. Without their franchise quarterback, the offense understandably faltered in a major way, as both Matt McGloin and Connor Cook struggled in Carr’s place.

With McGloin expected to leave via free agency, McKenzie would be needing a third quarterback on the roster — preferably a veteran with starting experience to provide competition for Cook.

So he went out and signed E.J. Manuel to a one-year deal worth $800,000, with none of it being guaranteed.

The Good

Connor Cook has exactly one start to his name, and the first impression is one he’d rather forget. To be fair, he was thrown into the fire under difficult circumstances, but it was a rough start for the heir apparent of the backup quarterback job.

With that being said, finding a third quarterback who had starting experience is something the Raiders absolutely had to do this offseason, and McKenzie gets just that in E.J. Manuel.

The former first-round pick didn’t live up to his draft slot, but he was by no means a disaster in four seasons in Buffalo. He started just 17 games, but he has 19 career TDs compared to 15 INTs, which while not exactly a Carr-like ratio, is still doing more good than bad.

Manuel has also proven to be durable, appearing on the injury report only once since the 2014 season. So if called upon, Manuel should certainly be able to stay on the field.

And if he gets on the field, Raider Nation should feel comfortable that he won’t do more harm than good. He’s proven to be a fairly conservative quarterback, who tends to make sound decisions. If he can come in, throw for around 200 yards, 1 TD and no interceptions, it’s hard to ask for more than that from your third quarterback.

If Manuel never sees the field, at the very least, competition is a good thing, and hopefully that competition helps Connor Cook turn into a more reliable second option. And if he doesn’t work out or if he is bad enough to not even make the 53-man roster, McKenzie can get out of this one without paying Manuel a single penny.

The Bad

Manuel’s most recent action on the field was awful to say the least. In 2016, he completed only 11 of 26 passes (42.3%) with no TDs or INTs, while taking three sacks. He fumbled the ball twice.

While he has a positive TD/INT ratio to his name (19 to 15), that doesn’t take into account his fumbles. There have been 11 of them in four years, which is definitely a concern.

For his career, Manuel has completed 58.3% of his passes, so accuracy is also an issue.

So it goes without saying that he has failed to live up to his first-round draft slot, and at this point, this just seems like the player he is going to be.

Which for the Raiders, as the third quarterback, is just fine. The third quarterback on just about every team isn’t going to boast a flashy stat line…otherwise they wouldn’t be the third quarterback.

Jared Cook

Oakland’s pursuit of Martellus Bennett made it evident that the Raiders were searching for an upgrade at the tight end position. But Martellus signed in Green Bay, and McKenzie pivoted to Jared Cook on a two-year deal worth $10.6 million, with $5 million of that being guaranteed.

The signing sent a clear signal that the Raiders aren’t confident that Clive Walford is the solution as the top pass-catching tight end on the team. Otherwise, they would have pursued a lower-quality tight end instead of Bennett or Cook.

Derek Carr was a big reason why Cook decided to sign in Oakland, thanks to Carr’s talent, but also his recruiting abilities.

The Good

Jared Cook is no Martellus Bennett, but he’s not a bad alternative. Not counting his rookie season, Cook has averaged 42 catches, 544.7 yards and 2.4 touchdowns per year.

That type of consistent production isn’t going to earn him any All-Pro honors, but it will provide the Raiders with a steady, reliable pass-catching option at tight end. Something they haven’t had since the days of Zach Miller.

Cook made strides as a pass-catcher in 2016, in regard to his previous problem with dropped passes. Fox Sports credited him with only one dropped pass and Sporting Charts only marked him down for two.

Dropped passes were a major issue for the pass-catchers last season, and while Cook has struggled here in the past, his most recent season is an indication that he has improved in this area. So if that can continue in 2016, he could be in line for a career season.

If Cook can produce, he could do wonders for the offense. Being a threat up the seams will help free up things for Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree on the outside. And if more targets are going to Jared Cook, that means less targets are going to Seth Roberts.

The Bad

At this point of Cook’s career, the cliche way to evaluate his seven seasons in the NFL is that “he is what he is”. Every season, it seems like he has been pegged as a potential breakout candidate, and every year, it doesn’t happen.

Between his shaky hands and so-so route-running ability, Cook has struggled to live up to expectations time and time again. He’ll now be on his fourth team, and with a MVP candidate quarterback in a dynamic offense, don’t be surprised if the “Jared Cook breakout season” narrative gets going once again.

While Cook improved in 2016 in regard to dropped passes, his overall body of work gives reason for concern.

In terms of drops to targets ratio, being ranked in the top five over the last five seasons doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. Especially with the Raiders pass-catchers struggling so much in this area in recent years, most notably in 2016.

But if Cook doesn’t pan out, in classic Reggie McKenzie fashion, he can be dumped after year one with no dead money hit. And if Cook does pan out and haul in 50+ receptions with minimal drops, he’ll easily exceed the value of his contract.