Tag: Austin Hooper

5 big questions on offense as Raiders wrap up minicamp

Raiders have a lot of pretty big questions facing them as they enter the heart of the offseason. Here are 5 facing the offense.

Every offseason brings questions that need answers. For this Raiders team, they may have more questions than answers. Some of these questions are no small thing.

Last week the Raiders wrapped up their offseason practices with their three-day mandatory minicamp. That means they have now entered the longest and final portion of the offseason. The next time these players convene will be training camp at the end of July.

They enter this six weeks with many things unsettled. Most of which will still be unsettled when camp begins, giving them a lot to think about over the next six weeks.

Browns will eat little dead money in 2023, Austin Hooper still on the books

While the Browns are paying very little dead money this season, most of it is to one particular player

The Cleveland Browns have become quite famous for how they have manipulated the cap with void years, and in the future, they will start charging toward their salary cap. However, dead cap is also a part of the player acquisition and contract game in free agency, and unfortunately, that leads to teams paying the debt of players years after they leave the team. That is the case with the Browns and tight end Austin Hooper.

While Hooper has not been a member of the Browns since the 2021 season, the Browns are still on the hook for a chunk of dead cap from his deal. All-in-all, the Browns are in the bottom ten in dead cap owed, managing their books well. They owe just over $10 million in dead cap this season, and here is how it breaks down.

5 Raiders veterans who could lose their job to rookies

5 Raiders veterans who could lose their job to rookies

Few jobs are safe on a 6-11 team. It’s the Raiders coaching staff’s job to try and improve upon such a season, and much of the hopes for that rest in the new rookie class.

The team’s veterans know this. Many of them are aware they will be replaced by the new guys, or at very least they must leave it all on the field to hold them off.

By the same token, the youngsters must develop quickly to prove they can hang with the big boys.

These are the Raiders veterans who look to be in the most danger of being overtaken by a rookie this season.

Raiders not expected to receive compensatory draft picks in 2024

No comp picks for Raiders next year

For the first time in a while the Raiders had compensatory picks in this year’s draft. They had two of them, in fact — at the end of rounds five and six. But in this year’s free agency, they again are looking at a net gain in free agency, which means no compensatory picks in the 2024 draft are expected.

Here are the Raiders’ free agent losses vs gains as detailed by Overthecap.com:

Lost – 3

Jarrett Stidham
Denzel Perryman
Andrew Billings

Gains — 6

Jimmy Garoppolo
Jakobi Meyers
Marcus Epps
Robert Spillane
Brandon Facyson
Austin Hooper

The Raiders also lost Clelin Ferrell and Mack Hollins but they don’t count in the formula, and even if they did, the Raiders would still have more outgoing than incoming, so it wouldn’t really matter.

There are several factors that play into what kind of compensation a team gets from lost free agents. But the first one is simple math. If they signed more free agents than they lost, they don’t get any picks for that.

Fantasy football: Veterans most affected by the NFL draft

Exploring how rookies may negatively impact veterans in fantasy football.

While one could stretch out the meaning of which veterans are affected by the 2023 NFL Draft in a multitude of ways, the focus here will be on playing time and/or utilization potential among conventional fantasy football assets.

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Raiders TE Austin Hooper talks Bucs QB Baker Mayfield

Hooper praised Mayfield’s locker room presence and disparaged rumors about the newest Bucs signal caller.

Much has been said about new Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield since he left the Cleveland Browns in 2021, but one of his former teammates had a few things to say of his own.

Raiders TE Austin Hooper, who played with Mayfield in Cleveland, made an appearance on Jim Rome’s Show on April 6. Rome brought up Mayfield, and Hooper talked about the narratives surrounding the signal caller and what he thought of their time together with the Browns.

There was lots of talk about Mayfield’s presence in the locker room potentially clashing with the team during his tenure with the Browns, but Hooper disparaged those rumors — in fact, he almost seemed to pinpoint where they came from.

“Everything that came out about him, it was nothing from guys on the team,” Hooper said. “Once decisions were made, certain people within a building had to justify their decision. That’s all I’m gonna say about that… He’s never had any issues with anyone in the locker room. He’s a great teammate, he’s a good dude, always checks in on everyone.”

Hooper also discussed his ability to make his mark when he gets an opportunity, citing his tenure with the Rams, and mentioned that he was happy for Mayfield when he signed with Tampa Bay.

“You’ve seen him. He gets his opportunities, especially with the Rams coming on short notice, getting his opportunity going and succeeding,” Hooper said. “So I mean, I was super happy for him.”

That’s not to say that Hooper denied Baker enjoyed a little trash talk — in fact, he said teammates in the locker room enjoyed it and that it’s far better than other QBs who tend to be what Hooper described as “malaise.”

“He’ll chirp a little bit, but that’s a part of it, and that’s why the guys love him,” Hooper said. “He’s not a robot, he’s a real person. And a lot of, at least a vast majority of the team really appreciated that about him.”

Mayfield isn’t guaranteed to start, but he could have a new opportunity to make his mark when Tampa Bay kicks its season off in the coming months.

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Ex-Titans TE Austin Hooper talks 2022 collapse, Mike Vrabel’s leadership

Former Titans and new Raiders TE Austin Hooper recently spoke about Tennessee’s 2022 collapse and lauded Mike Vrabel for his leadership.

For the first time since leaving the Tennessee Titans in free agency and signing with the Las Vegas Raiders, tight end Austin Hooper recently talked about what was a rough 2022 season for his now-former team.

Hooper was recently a guest on “Open Mike” with Michael Silver and said he didn’t think the team “laid down” because former general manager Jon Robinson was fired.

Rather, he attributed the collapse on several factors, including losing close games because of “one play here and one play there,” and injuries.

Hooper also touched on what it was like to play for head coach Mike Vrabel, who he lauded for his handling of the team during its seven-game losing streak to close out the season (clip starts at 21:33).

Hooper ended up inking a very reasonable one-year, $2.75 million deal with the Raiders. Meanwhile, the Titans remain in the market for multiple tight ends behind 2022 fourth-round pick, Chigoziem Okonkwo.

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Ex-Titans TE Austin Hooper signing 1-year deal with Raiders

Tight end Austin Hooper is leaving the Titans to sign a one-year deal with the Raiders.

The Tennessee Titans have officially lost another member of their offense after tight end Austin Hooper agreed to terms on a one-year $2.75 million contract with the Las Vegas Raiders on Wednesday, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.

Hooper’s deal can reach as high as $3.5 million with performance and/or playing time incentives.

This divorce was largely expected following Chig Okonkwo’s dominant first season that saw him lead all rookie tight ends in yards and touchdowns (tied).

Hooper may not have resorted back to his Pro Bowl days as many Titans fans had hoped for, but his impact during clutch situations will undoubtedly be missed.

It seemed like every other critical third-down completion was thrown Hooper’s way, and he usually made the play for his team more often than not.

Hooper is coming off a respectable season in which he totaled 41 catches for 444 yards and two touchdowns.

The Stanford product also finished with an overall grade of 68.8 and a receiving grade of 74.6, per Pro Football Focus.

Tennessee’s former tight end will now get a significant opportunity to help fill the Raiders’ void atop the depth chart now that Darren Waller has been traded to the New York Giants.

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Raiders signing TE Austin Hooper to one-year deal

The #Raiders add another tight end:

The Las Vegas Raiders have officially doubled down in their efforts to replace Darren Waller.

According to theScore’s Jordan Schultz, tight end Austin Hooper has signed a one-year deal in Las Vegas. Full terms of the contract have yet to be announced.

Hooper, 28, reportedly had a free-agent visit with the Raiders on Monday. That surfaced only a short time after Vegas added another tight end in OJ Howard.

Last week, the Raiders traded Waller, a 2020 Pro Bowler, to the New York Giants for a third-round pick.

Hooper comes to Las Vegas with a Pro Bowl resume of his own. He earned two nods to the All-Star game in 2018 and 2019 with the Atlanta Falcons, who selected him in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft.

In no surprise, those were the best two years of his career as he surpassed 70 catches in both. In the three seasons since his Pro Bowl years, Hooper’s numbers have dropped and he has maxed out at 46 catches in that time. .

However, the Raiders could be a solution for Hooper.

In 2020, Hooper signed a four-year, $44 million deal with the Cleveland Browns and spent two seasons there. Last year, Hooper was with the Tennessee Titans.

Through that trio of years, Hooper’s highest total of targets (70) came in 2020, when he played the fewest amount of games, just 13.

Enter Jimmy Garoppolo.

Garoppolo, who signed a three-year contract with the Raiders, likes his tight ends.

The two healthiest years of Garoppolo’s career with the San Francisco 49ers came in 2019 and 2021. In those, 49ers All-Pro tight end George Kittle had 107 and 94 targets, respectively.

Garoppolo and Hooper will need to build chemistry, but Hooper could turn out to be a diamond in the rough.

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