Rookie Report Card: Amari Cooper and Thomas Rawls
Each week throughout the season, I’ll cover at least two rookies in the Rookie Report Card and try to always include the biggest performers from that particular week. On top of reviewing my expectations for each player coming into the league and covering how he’s performed at the NFL level to this point, I’ll actually give him a grade in three categories. Those categories are performance to date, 2015 potential and long term upside.
The series continues with a look at Amari Cooper and Thomas Rawls.
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Amari Cooper, WR OAK
Week Three Stats: Eight receptions, 134 yards and a fumble on 11 targets
Like many, Cooper was my top rookie throughout the off-season and through three games of his NFL career, there’s no reason to move him from that spot.
One of the best route runners to come out of college in recent years, Cooper has everything needed to be a dominant possession receiver while also having the speed to beat defenders over the top. With an incredible burst off the line of scrimmage, he’s able to get defenders on their heels immediately. Then when he reaches the top of his route, he has the rare ability to change directions without losing a majority of his speed. With knee buckling shake and powerful explosiveness, he regularly gets separation whether he’s running short crossing routes or a deep post.
Cooper proved to be equally explosive after the catch as well. A smooth runner with the ball in his hands, he’s able to get to top speed quickly and use his change of direction skills to cut back towards the middle of the field when defenders over-pursue. With good size at 6’-1” and 211 pounds, he’s difficult to bring to the ground after the catch.
Although there were very few doubters of Cooper coming out of Alabama, those who questioned his upside seemed concerned about his lack of leaping ability (34” vertical) and his habit of dropping a few passes from time to time while in college. While each of those slight concerns are legit, he more than makes up for it with his sharp routes and ability to create space down the field – and he’s proven that over the first three weeks of the year.
In his three games, Cooper has improved with each week that has passed. After catching five passes for 47 yards in his debut, he caught seven passes for 109 yards and a touchdown in week two versus the Ravens and hauled in eight balls for 134 yards against the Browns in week three.
Over that time, Cooper has established himself as a favorite target for Derek Carr. Averaging ten targets per game on the season, he and Carr look to be developing chemistry. Perhaps more importantly, it appears Cooper is already becoming a big part of the Raiders’ weekly game plan and it showed in week three. He was moved around the formation regularly early in the game. On the Raiders’ first possession, he ran an eight-yard out from wide left on third down that he turned into a 23-yard gain. A few plays later, he turned a short pass after lining up wide right into an 18-yard gain. Later in that possession, he ran a deep crosser from the right slot where he nearly shook the defender out of his shoes at the top of his round and he picked up 40-yards. After lining up in four different spots and seeing three targets in the Raiders’ first possession against the Browns, it’s clear the Oakland coaching staff is scheming to get the ball to their rookie playmaker.
Cooper also coughed up a fumble in the fourth quarter on Sunday, but fantasy owners shouldn’t be concerned that it could develop into a problem that could hurt his effectiveness or playing time. On a quick slant, he was popped by a linebacker while also taking contact from Joe Haden right after he snatched the ball. It happened so fast I wasn’t convinced he had even completed the catch.
Although Cooper wasn’t nearly as productive in the second half of the game, we can attribute that to the Raiders nursing a lead in the second half.
Going forward, it would be surprising if Cooper didn’t continue to see a minimum of ten targets a week. Fantasy owners should also expect him to get more and more red zone targets as the season progresses. Although it won’t show up in the stat sheet, he was wide open in the end zone on a slant route in the second quarter but Carr went the other way with the ball.
Overall, Cooper appears to be everything we thought he’d be in the off-season. Already playing like a weekly WR2/WR3, fantasy owners should have him in their lineups every week regardless of who the Raiders are facing and look forward to WR1 numbers in the future. It would take a king’s ransom for me to let him go in a trade.
| Rookie Report Card | ||
| Player: Amari Cooper | ||
| Performance To Date | 2015 Potential | Long Term Upside |
| B+ | A- | A+ |
Thomas Rawls, RB SEA
Week Three Stats: 16 carries for 104 rushing yards
An intriguing prospect coming out of Central Michigan, it was surprising to see Rawls go undrafted on draft weekend despite his off the field issues.
Although Rawls doesn’t have great straight line speed (4.65 40-yard dash at the combine), he showed a good burst through the hole while at Central Michigan. Always attacking the line of scrimmage, he’s a one-cut runner with good vision to find a hole and the ability to slide side-to-side to find running room and blast through a crease.
With very good power considering his size (5’-9”, 215 pounds), Rawls looks to deliver punishment every time he carries the ball. Always running behind his pads, he displayed the ability while in college to consistently take a hit, keep his balance, and churn his legs forward to gain positive yardage after contact.
If there was a knock on Rawls during the draft process (outside of his transgressions with the law), it was his inability to contribute as a pass blocker and questionable speed to get the corner on perimeter runs. To this point, he’s silenced the doubters since arriving in Seattle as an undrafted free agent.
After making the duo of Robert Turbin and Christine Michael expendable due to his strong play during the preseason where he ran for 158 yards and a touchdown on 30 carries (7.5 yards per carry) while adding four receptions for 42 yards and another score, Rawls took over as the primary backup to Marshawn Lynch – which doesn’t typically turn into many regular season opportunities.
That all changed on Sunday when Rawls was called on to become Seattle’s lead back against the Bears after Lynch left with a hamstring injury.
Rawls looked good on Sunday. Just like in his time with the Chippewas in the MAC, he ran hard while displaying excellent vision and the ability to hit cut back running lanes. Although he got to the second level with ease throughout the game against a weak Bears defense, he ran downhill and regularly dished out punishment before always falling forward.
Mixing in a nice stiff arm on a third quarter run as well as showing impressive balance on a third down run where he was hit at the line of scrimmage, bounced off the tackle and surged forward for the first down, Rawls showed that he could be an effective runner against a first-team defense.
Despite the good numbers, however, there are still questions to be answered about Rawls’ long-term upside. Seattle had a lead for much of the game so they weren’t forced to throw very often. When they did, Fred Jackson was brought in to protect Russell Wilson, so his pass blocking skills weren’t tested much if at all. He also did a majority of his damage between the tackles against the Bears so it’s unknown if he has the quickness to get the edge on a regular basis.
While the first meaningful touches of Rawls’ career should be encouraging for dynasty owners, all of us should keep in mind this performance came against a truly dreadful defense when the Seahawks held a lead and this opportunity only presented itself because Lynch was sidelined. In all actuality, unless Lynch’s injury is more serious than initial reports indicated, there’s a very good chance we saw his best (and most active) game of the season on Sunday and it may be a long time before he gets 16 touches in a game again.
While he has the upside to become an early down ball carrier due to an impressive burst and very good vision and running instincts, Rawls is quite raw and there are still questions as to whether he can handle a full workload at the NFL level or stay on the field in passing situations.
Overall, nothing has changed since the beginning of the season for Rawls’ dynasty owners. He’s still a nice developmental asset that has short term upside which depends completely on Lynch’s health and the long term potential to become a 15-20 carry runner which could produce top-20 running back numbers.
I won’t be looking to trade Rawls in the leagues that I own him, but I’d absolutely be willing to talk to an interested owner.
| Rookie Report Card | ||
| Player: Thomas Rawls | ||
| Performance To Date | 2015 Potential | Long Term Upside |
| C | B- | B- |
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