It’s a classic tale. An NFL team signs a player that doesn’t exactly live up to the expectations set by the franchise and is either traded or released. That same player is signed by another team and inexplicably that player ends up excelling in their new environment. Sometimes it is a simple environment change, other times it is the scheme or the personnel they are surrounded with.
Either way, the team that let them go and did not reap the rewards of their investment has to see that they made a mistake in letting that player go prematurely. Here are three players the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders gave up on too early.
3 players the Raiders gave up on way too early
Player no. 3: Arden Key, Defensive End
Defensive end Arden Key was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Key spent two seasons in Oakland and moved with the team to Las Vegas for the 2020 season. Key only played a full season in his rookie year and then became a rotating player logging three sacks over three seasons.
Key, along with fellow Raiders defensive tackle Mo Hurst, went to the San Francisco 49ers for the 2021 season, and then in 2022 Key was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Key hit a career-high 6.5 sacks with the 49ers and then 4.5 with the Jaguars. After his performance with the Jaguars Key was rewarded in 2023 with a 3-year contract with the Tennessee Titans worth up to $21 million. Key also played in the playoffs with both the Jaguars and the 49ers. Key never participated in the offseason with the Raiders.
If it wasn’t already clear, Key recorded double the sacks in one year with the 49ers compared to three total seasons in Oakland/Las Vegas. Key thrived under Kyle Shanahan and his defense led by Demeco Ryans, now head coach of the Houston Texans. Key was not surrounded by much defensive talent in Oakland/Las Vegas, especially after the release of Khalil Mack.
Key was not too upset when he was released by the Raiders citing that it was “the best thing that could have happened.” Based on his production and new contract he may not be wrong. The Raiders certainly missed a step along the way and Key was able to thrive in every other environment he found himself in after being released.
Player no. 2: Denico Autry, Defensive End
Yes, another defensive end makes the list. The Raiders struggled to find a replacement for Khalil Mack until Maxx Crosby was discovered and hit his stride in the desert. Denico Autry was an undrafted free agent before signing with the Oakland Raiders. Autry played four seasons in Oakland from 2014-2017 playing a substantial role on the defensive line. Autry was a disruptor in the 2016 campaign that led to the Raiders’ first playoff appearance since the 2002 season. Autry, alongside Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin, were vital to the Raiders production that season. Autry peaked in 2017 with a career high five sacks, logging 5.5 combined in the previous three seasons.
You can see where this was going. Instead of signing Autry to a long-term contract the Raiders let Autry hit the open market. The Indianapolis Colts realized Autry’s potential and signed him to a three-year deal worth up to $18 million. In Autry’s three seasons with the Colts he logged 20 sacks, nearly double what he achieved in Oakland. Autry also made it to the playoffs two times in four seasons with the Colts.
Autry was not done. After his contract expired in Indianapolis he signed a third deal with the Tennessee Titans (3 years/$21 million) and thrived under head coach Mike Vrabel. Autry put up 17 sacks in two seasons and went to the playoffs in his inaugural season. The 6’5 285 pound edge rusher found himself a home in Tennessee after being a reliable and productive force on the defensive line. The Raiders still received good value from signing the free agent but clearly missed out on a long-term investment that would pay dividends for the Raiders.
This especially hurts considering Autry still could have played with the Raiders in 2022. Autry’s eight sacks in 2022 would have helped the defensive unit that put up the third-worst sack numbers in 2022 with 27 total. This is yet another edge rusher that was able to be effective with other clubs after leaving the Raiders and was rewarded financially at the same time.
Player no. 1: Amari Cooper, WR
One of the biggest excuses for Derek Carr was that he went so many seasons without a true, number one wide receiver to help him on the offense. Carr did have a number one receiver for several seasons; Amari Cooper.
Cooper was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft with the fourth pick overall. Cooper exploded alongside Michael Crabtree and company putting up back-to-back 1,000+ yard seasons in 2015 and 2016. Cooper, a 2x Pro Bowler in Oakland, scored 11 touchdowns his first two seasons before sustaining an injury and failing to eclipse more than 600 yards in 2017. In 2018 the Raiders’ patience had run out and traded Cooper before the trade deadline to the Dallas Cowboys for a 2019 first-round pick.
Cooper, similar to Arden Key, was not upset about being traded by the Raiders. Cooper stated the trade was “necessary” and claimed that the Raiders “weren’t a good fit.” Cooper thrived in Dallas completing almost 4,000 receiving yards in 3.5 seasons with 27 touchdowns and a career high average of 15.1 yards per reception. Cooper went to the playoffs twice with the Cowboys and achieved two more Pro Bowl selections.
The Raiders gave up on Cooper at the age of 24, extremely young for any player in the NFL, who still had huge upside. While Cooper was eventually traded by the Cowboys to the Browns (citing effort concerns) the Raiders still ultimately lost the trade. The first-round pick they received from the Cowboys turned into safety Jonathan Abram who is no longer on the team and essentially was labeled a “bust.”
The Raiders struggled to replace Cooper until finally landing Davante Adams, which did not come to fruition until 2022, nearly four years after trading away Cooper.
These three players could have played significant roles for the Raiders over the past decade and could have altered the losing ways the Raiders have experienced in that time frame. Hopefully, the lesson has been learned.