After trading Cooper to Dallas, struggling Raiders put Marshawn Lynch on injured reserve

The Oakland Raiders might have some trouble scoring over the rest of this season. Oakland traded talented but inconsistent wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday afternoon, leaving the team with a receiving corps that is headed by veteran Jordy Nelson, inconsistent Martavis Bryant, and slot man Seth Roberts. 

Later in the day, the Raiders announced that they’ve placed running back Marshawn Lynch on injured reserve. 

It was reported over the weekend that Lynch has a groin injury that will keep him out for at least a month. Our Sean Wagner-McGough summed up the news nicely at the time: 

It’s sad, but fitting that the Raiders lost Lynch of all players to an injury. After securing their move to Las Vegas, trading Khalil Mack, and starting 1-5, it’s become clear that — tanking or not — the Raiders probably won’t give Oakland the kind of season the city deserves before the Raiders abandon it. Lynch is an Oakland icon and he was the only fun part of the Raiders’ season. At the very least, Oakland fans deserved to watch Lynch go all Beast Mode over opposing defenses before their beloved Raiders leave them behind for a new city. Now, they won’t even get that consolation prize. 

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Oakland seems likely to field one of the NFL’s worst offenses and worst defenses over the rest of the season, setting the team up with a pick near the top of the draft. Add to that the picks the Raiders received from Chicago and Dallas in the trades for Mack and Cooper, and the Raiders will have three first-round selections. That’s a setup that’s worked nicely for teams in recent seasons, and if they want to get back near the top of the standings, they will have to nail those picks. Between now and then, though, things could be pretty ugly.