Tight End Jared Cook

The Oakland Raiders are adding yet another weapon to the offense.

Thursday afternoon the Silver and Black signed tight end Jared Cook who will enter his ninth season in the NFL, and will now join forces with quarterback Derek Carr. The acquisition of Cook adds another arrow in the quiver for the Raiders signal-caller, who shouldn't have a shortage of playmakers in 2017.

At 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, the tight end out of the University of South Carolina serves as a big target downfield, and has the hands to make him a reliable player. In case you're unfamiliar with the newest player to don the Silver and Black; here's five things you should know about Cook.

He's a former wide receiver and free safety.

Cook grew up in Suwanee, Ga., where he attended North Gwinnett High School and played on the school's football team. Prior to growing into his rather large frame, the Georgia native served as a wide receiver and free safety for his team. In his senior season, Cook posted a stat line of 800 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns, and added a first-team All-State appearance to his résumé. His ability to haul in passes at an early age contributed to his ability to establish himself as a quality receiver.

Cook has a clutch gene.

In 2016, Cook hauled in arguably one of the best catches in postseason history. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the divisional round of the playoffs, in a tie-game with 12 seconds left in regulation, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers scrambled left looking for someone to make a play. Somehow, Rodgers located Cook streaking across the middle of the field, and fired a dart to his tight end. What came next was nothing short of amazing, as Cook hauled in the pass on the sideline with an incredible toe-tap reception. The play would end up putting the Packers within field goal range, and helped the team seal the last-second victory, which ultimately saved their season.

He's a contributor for The Players' Tribune.

Not only is Cook a gifted football player, but he's also a talented writer, and proved that with his piece in The Players' Tribune. The article touched on his time with past teams, specifically the Packers, but spoke distinctively about on the feeling of reaching the playoffs. The feeling of playing past the regular season is something he wants more of, and has a good chance of accomplishing that with the Silver and Black.

The veteran tight end played football at the University of South Carolina.

Cook joined the Gamecocks as a wide receiver, but left as a tight end. After redshirting his freshman year, he tallied 113 yards receiving, and one touchdown as a wide receiver during his sophomore campaign. Following his shift to the tight end position, Cook accumulated 994 yards receiving during his two-year stint at tight end to go along with his six touchdowns.

 When he isn't playing football, Cook enjoys playing video games and shooting hoops.

The nine-year veteran considers himself a family man, and enjoys spending time with his wife and kids, which entails relaxing, playing basketball, and video games. While talking to Raiders.com, Cook didn't specify the types of video games he plays, but I'd be hard pressed to believe he doesn't dabble with a little Madden or NBA2K.