Tim Brown doesn't want Amari Cooper to face comparisons

Lindsay H. Jones | USA TODAY Sports

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ALAMEDA, Calif. – For three years, Tim Brown had watched Amari Cooper from afar, closely studying Cooper’s game film at the University of Alabama, and watching Cooper grow into the most dominant wide receiver in college football. When Brown finally got a chance to meet Cooper in New York City at the Heisman Trophy ceremony last November, Brown had one thing to say.

“I hope you’re available when the Raiders are picking,” Brown recalled.

It was a selfish thought, of course, because Brown, the longtime Raiders receiver, has been bugging his old friends still working for the team for years to find an elite wide receiver. So imagine Brown’s delight when the Raiders did indeed use their No. 4 pick on Cooper in April.

After Cooper’s hot start to his rookie year, with 20 catches for 290 yards – including back-to-back 100-yard games – he’s drawing some far-too-early comparisons to Brown, who caught 99 touchdowns for the Raiders between 1988-2003 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Brown told USA TODAY Sports he hates that comparisons are already being made, but only because he doesn’t want Cooper to feel that sort of pressure so early in his career. Since their initial meeting last December, Brown has visited briefly with Cooper during training camp (Brown is part of the broadcast team calling Oakland’s preseason games) but is trying to give Cooper space to develop on his own.

“This kid is going to be fantastic, going to do great things for the Raiders. I love the fact that people are bringing my name up, but for him, I don't want him to see me and go 'oh, there goes Tim' I don't want to be a sore thumb when he sees him,” Brown said.

But Brown is happy to critique Cooper from afar, like he did for the last three years as a college football analyst for ESPN.

What has impressed Brown so much so far about Cooper in the NFL is the same thing that he loved last year – Cooper’s refined route running.

“Watching him run a double-move on somebody or watching him run that square-in and catch a pass, those things, you just don't see in college. You see some very talented guys, but some guys here in the league, some of the top receivers in the league, can't run routes the way Amari runs routes,” Brown said. “I don't know if the Raiders could have done better.

"I mean, [West Virginia receiver] Kevin White might have timed out better and scored better or whatever, but the fact of the matter was, Kevin White only had one year of playing at that level. When you have a guy that played three years, I don't think it was close to what Amari did.”

Cooper told USA TODAY Sports his polished route-running skills and diverse route tree is a result of years of playing receiver and studying routes since he was a child. It also certainly helped that he played in a pro-style offense at Alabama, said Oakland head coach Jack Del Rio, who has a long relationship with Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban.

“That development as a full receiver, they block some, they run the full route tree and all the experience and exposure against top competition, I think all of that has helped him with his development. And then he was just blessed with God-given ability,” Del Rio said.

Cooper is already drawing coverage from opposing teams’ top cornerbacks, including Patrick Peterson in a preseason game against Arizona, and Browns Pro Bowler Joe Haden last week. Cooper caught four consecutive passes against Haden (who suffered a rib injury early in the game) in that contest.

“Your technique has to be good, you have to study those guys to see what they are comfortable doing,” Cooper said. “If they use their hands a lot, then you have to use your hands a lot. ... From what I've noticed, guys try to use their hands when they're pressing me, I guess, because I think I have some pretty good releases, so they try to disrupt that timing to keep Derek from throwing me the ball.”

Before each game, and especially when he knows he’ll be facing a top-flight cornerback, Cooper now finds himself thinking back to advice veteran Oakland safety Charles Woodson gave to teammates before the Raiders’ Week 2 game against Baltimore.

“He said, ‘Don't be afraid to be great,’” Cooper recalled. “He's a great player and you want to listen to what he says. But what it meant to me was -- you just asked me about feeling pressure? I don't feel any pressure because I'm not going to be afraid to be great.”

Follow Lindsay H. Jones on Twitter @bylindsayhjones.

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