The Las Vegas Raiders made plenty of upgrades this offseason under the new leadership tandem of head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Spytek. Geno Smith is now under center, and Ashton Jeanty is the team's running back, so massive offensive improvements are expected in 2025.
However, the team still has a bit of a question mark at wide receiver outside of Jakobi Meyers. The group certainly has talent with third-year player Tre Tucker and rookies Jack Bech, Dont'e Thornton Jr. and Tommy Mellott, but all of these players are unproven commodities at this point.
This has led to parts of Raider Nation wanting a veteran wideout added to the room, and players like Amari Cooper, Keenan Allen and Gabe Davis have been at the top of the list. Cooper signing with the Silver and Black would be a nice reunion, but a Raiders legend warned the team against this move.
Lincoln Kennedy doesn't want Raiders to sign Amari Cooper
On a recent episode of the "Locked On Raiders Podcast," former All-Pro offensive lineman Lincoln Kennedy talked about the team potentially re-signing Cooper. When asked if he was in favor of it, Kennedy shot the idea down instantly.
"No. Let me preface this by saying that I remember when Amari was drafted. I was one of the first guys on the Raiders to interview him. I looked in his eyes and realized he didn't want to be a Raider," Kennedy said. "He didn't enjoy his time in Oakland, that's why he couldn't wait to get out of there. ... My point for Amari is [that] he never took the next step to develop his route-running skills. He is not a good route-running receiver. ... That's all Amari Cooper is, is a name. I don't think they should do it."
While most would agree that Cooper is a good route-running receiver, Kennedy's point about him not maximizing his abilities and having no love for the Raiders is well taken. Not everyone is cut out for the Silver and Black, and Cooper already broke the hearts of Raider Nation once before.
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Granted, this is an entirely new era for the franchise, as the team relocated to Las Vegas and has undergone several leadership changes since dealing Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys in 2018. However, a tiger rarely changes its stripes, and some things are just not meant to be.
Cooper is on the downslope of his career as well, considering he was traded last season and mustered only 44 catches for 547 yards and four touchdowns in 2024 between the Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills. He is still just one year removed, however, from a Pro Bowl campaign in 2023.
Signing Cooper would be bittersweet for Raider Nation, as most would like him to end on a higher note with the franchise that mortgaged the No. 4 overall pick on him in the 2015 NFL Draft. But if Cooper doesn't want to come to Las Vegas and be a Raider, nobody can make him.