The Alabama football fraternity extends far and wide across the NFL after their dominance under Nick Saban. Over 400 players have played for the Crimson Tide and are currently in the NFL. Still, there is one less now after Amari Cooper abruptly announced his retirement before Week 1. He was set to play for the team that drafted him, the Raiders, but instead called it a career.
Nick Saban appeared on Friday's episode of the Pat McAfee Show, and McAfee asked him what he thinks about Amari Cooper's retirement. Saban said he was “shocked” but hoped he would be well. He praised how talented he was and how well he played in college with the Crimson Tide.
“He caught over 100 balls for us; he was fantastic when he played for us,” Saban said on the Pat McAfee Show on Friday. “He was a great competitor. Taciturn guy, maybe a bit misunderstood sometimes because he was so quiet. But a good person and a great competitor. He’s had a good career. Hate to see people like that not be able to continue their career for whatever reason, but I’m sure he’s got a good reason to hang it up.”
Cooper played for the Browns and Bills last season. He managed 547 yards in 14 games, the lowest yardage of his career. He was set to return to the team that drafted him, the Las Vegas Raiders, so his retirement is a shock.
Amari Cooper was a star for the Alabama football team from 2012 to 2014. He joined the Crimson Tide as a four-star wide receiver out of Miami and was an instant star. He helped Alabama win a national championship in 2012, and, as a junior, he won the SEC Offensive Player of the Year, Biletnikoff Award, and was named a unanimous All-American. He was massive for what the Alabama football program could do in those three seasons before he jumped to the NFL.
At the time, the Las Vegas and the Oakland Raiders drafted Cooper with the fourth pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. He was great for the Raiders, then shone for the Dallas Cowboys, and then was solid for the Cleveland Browns and the Buffalo Bills before hanging it up.
Nick Saban is more worried about the state of the Alabama football program this season than anything. Still, he also likes to see his former players excel, so Amari Cooper's retirement shocked him as much as everyone else.
