The Oakland Raiders are making a move in the late stages of free agency. Jon Gruden's squad is signing tight end Erik Swoope, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Swoope worked out for the team yesterday, and they apparently liked what they saw.
In a separate tweet, Rapoport noted he had also worked out for the Buccaneers and Redskins recently.
The Raiders lost last year's starting tight end, Jared Cook, to the Saints in free agency, so it makes since that they've been looking for some veteran help. With Cook no longer on the team, the tight end depth chart was startlingly thin, so some type of move was needed.
Gruden and co. opted to go with Swoope, who most recently was with the Colts. Swoope is an interesting player considering he never played college football. He played basketball at Miami, and signed with the Colts in 2014 despite never having played organized football.
After bouncing on and off of the practice squad his first couple of years in the league, he finally made a big impact in 2016. He appeared in all 16 games, starting four, catching 15 passes for 297 yards and one touchdown. Unfortunately, he didn't have the chance to follow it up, as he missed the entire 2017 season with a knee injury.
Last season, he caught eight passes for 87 yards. While Swoope, who is still only 27, does have some theoretical upside, he's not going to be able to replace Cook. He doesn't have much of a history of production, even if he is an elite athlete. The Raiders also have veterans Derek Carrier and Luke Willson, as well as fourth-round rookie Foster Moreau on the roster.