A short time after lobbying for a return to Minnesota on his Snapchat page, two-time Pro Bowl receiver and return man Cordarrelle Patterson decided to sign with the Oakland Raiders.
According to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, Patterson's deal with the Raiders is for two years, per a source informed of the contract. Patterson is able to void the deal after a year, per Rapoport.
An established ace on kickoffs, Patterson told me in January that his next destination would have to promise him a role within the offense as well -- something the Vikings struggled to do over Patterson's first four seasons. In 2016 he caught 52 balls for 453 yards and two touchdowns -- his best year since 2013 when he caught 45 passes for 469 yards and four touchdowns.
"Two years I spent damn near on the sideline," he said. "That's never a good feeling for any player. No player wants to go through that," he said. "I need to know if I'm going to play or not. If not, I'll take my talents elsewhere."
Patterson will be an instant upgrade over promising young running back Jalen Richard, who handled a majority of Oakland's kick and punt returns a year ago but will he find some field time next to Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper? Both were targeted more than 130 times by Derek Carr a year ago with the next highest wide receiver, Seth Roberts, seeing 77 passes.
There's no doubt the prospect of Patterson being a jack of all trades within Oakland's high-flying offense is enticing, but Minnesota tried just about everything over the past four seasons to make it work and failed.
So begins the next chapter for the former first-round pick, who has undeniable talent. In flashes, we've seen what Patterson is capable of, and it seems like enough to motivate Jack Del Rio into giving him a shot.
