Oakland Raiders: 5 questions to think about during the bye

4 of 5

MIAMI GARDENS, FL – NOVEMBER 05: Tight end Jared Cook No. 87 of the Oakland Raiders is tackled by cornerback Bobby McCain No. 28 of the Miami Dolphins and Maurice Smith No. 27 of the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on November 5, 2017 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images) /

Is the Derek Carr to Jared Cook connection here to stay?

A great development of late for the Raiders has been the increased importance of tight end Jared Cook in the passing game. Oakland wanted to upgrade the tight end position in the passing game and has certainly done so with the addition of Cook this past offseason.

In the Raiders’ last two victories, Cook has gone over 100 yards receiving. Without Cook, the Raiders would be riding an atrocious seven-game losing streak. A 2-7 2017 Raiders team would be a very sad thing, wouldn’t it have?

It took some time, but quarterback Derek Carr might have found a new favorite receiving target in Cook. His No. 1 wide receiver Amari Cooper has dropped a ridiculous amount of balls this season. You can’t call him Mr. Reliable when he is dropping a significant number of his targets. Cook might be playing the best ball of his NFL career for the Raiders. He’s really flourishing in this passing game.

The only issue with a continued Carr to Cook connection might be this: Cook’s two best games in the Silver and Black have come against teams with bad coverage linebackers in Kansas City and Miami. Who’s to say that Cook will get as advantageous of matchups the rest of the way in the Raiders’ receiving corps?

Home/Las Vegas Raiders News