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A Raiders offense that already featured one of the league’s top receiver duos in Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree just added the best remaining tight end on the open market. As NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport first reported Thursday, the Raiders are signing Jared Cook, who was most recently seen catching passes from Aaron Rodgers. 

According to ESPN’s Adam Caplan, who provided more details behind the signing, quarterback Derek Carr was heavily involved in the recruiting process:

Cook is coming off a season in which he caught 30 passes for 377 yards and a touchdown in 10 regular season games. Those numbers aren’t in anyway overwhelming, but it’s worth noting how Cook ended the season. After an early-season injury absence, Cook returned by racking up 553 yards over the Packers’ final 10 games (including their three postseason games). 

He did well enough that Aaron Rodgers wanted him back.

Of course, the Packers didn’t need Cook after signing Martellus Bennett -- a much more reliable player than Cook.

In Cook, the Raiders are getting a tight end who boasts the necessary athleticism to function as a top-caliber tight end. He doesn’t, however, feature reliable-enough hands to be considered one of the best tight ends in the game. So, it’ll help that he likely won’t be Carr’s top target and will be playing in an offense that features other capable playmakers. 

Make no mistake about it: This is a nice signing for the Raiders. It gives a playoff team and an MVP candidate another dangerous weapon. 

It also goes to show how far the Raiders have come. Now that they have their core in place, they don’t have to beg free agents to come to Oakland anymore.

As for Cook, after spending a season with Rodgers, he’s now going to catch passes from Carr. That’s not too bad either.