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The XFL is back and looking to last longer than it did the last time. For those unfamiliar, the XFL was a football league that lasted one season back in 2001. It’s meant to be a league where football can be played when the NFL season is over. While it failed the first, the XFL is under new leadership and is acquiring some former NFL talent. The league just recently held their draft of skill position players and there a few former Oakland Raiders who were selected by teams.
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Former Raider Connor Cook Picked 2nd Overall in XFL Draft
It wasn’t long ago when quarterback Connor Cook was on an NFL team. He was recently on the Detriot Lions back in June but was let go before training camp. Well, he’s going to get another chance to show what he can do as a football player while playing for the Houston Roughnecks.
Cook was the second player picked in the XFL’s Skill Position draft. His most notable time spent in the NFL was while he was a member of the Oakland Raiders. Cook was drafted by the team in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He was thrust into the spotlight after both Derek Carr and Matt McGloin got injured just before the start of the playoffs. Because of that, Cook had to be the first quarterback in NFL history to have his first start be in a playoff game. He failed and threw three interceptions in a losing effort. He never started an NFL game after.
Cook lasted a few months into the Gruden era but was let go before the season started in 2018. It was surprising Jon Gruden didn’t give him more of a shot because he was really high on Cook when he was coming into the NFL.
“My old boss Al Davis would have loved Connor Cook,” Gruden said back in 2016. “This kid pushes the ball down the field. He’s one of the guys in this draft that made me make funny sounds when I was watching him – clapping, crowing, going ‘Whoa! What a throw!’ ‘Ahhh!’
“All these prognostications of where guys should go and will go are two stories that are fun to talk about. But Connor Cook in this draft, based on all the other prospects and the need at the position, should go in the first round.”
He obviously didn’t live up to Gruden’s expectations in the NFL, but maybe he can reinvent himself in the XFL.
Other Former Raiders Selected
Rashard Davis, Elijah Hood and De’Mornay Pierson-El were three other former Raiders who were selected. Out of the three, Hood was the only player to actually see the field for Oakland. Davis was the top player selected in the entire draft. The wide receiver could be headed for XFL stardom considering his high draft status. Hood, a former North Carolina running back, could also be heading into the season with high expectations as he was drafted with the eighth pick by the Los Angeles Wildcats. The XFL should be littered with former Raider talent to start their run.
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