It is no secret that the Las Vegas Raiders need to surround newly-minted No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza with offensive talent. John Spytek began in free agency by adding Tyler Linderbaum and Jalen Nailor, but he'll surely use his nine remaining picks in the 2026 NFL Draft to do so as well.
Finding a true alpha wide receiver is surely near the top of the priority list for Spytek and Co., and no shortage of great players were expected to be available at the position toward the end of Round 1 and into the early part of Round 2. And for a while, the board was falling Las Vegas' way.
Mendoza is a good enough quarterback to quickly establish a rapport with any wide receiver, but adding a talented player who he has already played with may have given him a head start in the NFL. Unfortunately, the New York Jets took matters into their own hands and stole Omar Cooper Jr.
New York Jets trade up for Omar Cooper Jr. and ruin Fernando Mendoza and Las Vegas Raiders' dreams
With only a few picks remaining on Night 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Raiders were sitting pretty. Cooper Jr., Mendoza's Indiana teammate, only needed to survive a few picks from non-wide receiver-needy teams to become a legitimate option for Las Vegas at No. 36. A godsend.
But general manager Darren Mougey and the Jets' front office got revenge on the Raiders for out-tanking them for Mendoza by sneaking back into the first round and taking his prized college wideout. Just as soon as things looked promising, all hope vanished in a matter of seconds.
Cooper Jr. isn't the traditional X receiver that fans feel is necessary for Las Vegas' wideout room, but he is an incredibly tough player who does everything well and would have fit well in Klint Kubiak's offense. But he's not an option anymore; he's a New York Jet.
Surely Mendoza is just happy to be a Raider and thrilled to see his teammate and close friend land in the first round with any team. In fact, he said so earlier this week. But a part of him probably also wanted to reunite with Cooper Jr. at the NFL level and keep making magic on the field.
The silver lining here is that at least Washington wideout Denzel Boston will still be available as Round 2 of the draft kicks off on Friday. He doesn't have a previous working relationship with Mendoza, but he is a promising prospect nonetheless if he survives three picks and Las Vegas wants even him.
Although Cooper Jr. dropping to the Raiders at No. 36 has seemed like a pipe dream for quite some time now, the odds of it happening got higher and higher the further he slipped down the board. But the Jets had other plans. Oh well.
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