Raiders TE Draft Pick Mayer Has Many Seeing a Ghost
The Las Vegas Raiders have reached into their past, well, sort of.
When the Silver and Black selected tight end Michael Mayer of Notre Dame, in the second round (No. 35 overall) of the 2023 National Football League Draft on Friday, many people thought immediately of Dave Casper.
Casper, nicknamed “Ghost” because of the cartoon character of the same name, also went to Notre Dame and became the greatest tight end in the Raiders’ 63-year history.
Also a second-round pick (No. 45 overall) of the Raiders in the 1974 NFL Draft, all Casper did was catch a pass for the first touchdown as the Silver and Black won Super Bowl XI, make All-Pro four times, play in five Pro Bowls and eventually was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
Casper played on what has been voted the greatest offensive line in NFL history alongside fellow Hall of Famers Art Shell, Gene Upshaw, and Jim Otto, while George Buehler and John Vella on the other side of the line weren’t too bad either.
That’s all Mayer has to live up to.
Not to mention that the Raiders have had other outstanding tight ends, such as Todd Christensen, Raymond Chester, Zach Miller, Billy Cannon, Bob Moore, Rickey Dudley, Jared Cook, and the recently departed Darren Waller.
Of course, the 6-5 265-pound Mayer has a lot going for him, too, moving into the starting lineup at Notre Dame as a freshman after being the Kentucky Football Player of the Year as a senior at Covington Catholic High in Park Hills, Ky., and eventually becoming a Consensus All-American as a junior before deciding to turn pro.
Mayer set Notre Dame records for receiving by a tight end, making 180 catches in his career for 2,099 yards and 18 touchdowns.
When asked about Casper, Mayer didn’t mention him by name but said: “I think the first thing is the tradition with the Las Vegas Raiders. I mean, they’ve had so many, so many good tight ends. There’s no doubt about that. They know how to use tight ends, and Coach (Josh) McDaniels knows how to use tight ends, and he loves tight ends. And so, I think I’m going to fit very well into the offense. I think it goes back to what I was saying before; it’s coming in, doing what they’re asking me to do, and not doing anything more. Because it’s about winning football games, and that’s kind of what they drafted me to do. And so, I’m going to come in, do what they ask me to do, work my hardest, and that’s really it. That’s what I do. That’s kind of what I did when I went to Notre Dame, that’s what I’m going to do when we start this up.”
Mayer shouldn’t have the problem Casper faced when he came to the Raiders for his first rookie practice. The 6-4 Casper, who had played some interior line at Notre Dame, was a bit overweight, with some people saying he weighed close to 260 pounds.
So after the Raiders played him inside during those practices, Casper returned to Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., and began a vigorous daily training program. When he returned to the Raiders, Casper was a svelte 230 pounds, so they moved him to tight end, and the rest is history.
In his eight seasons with the Raiders, Casper caught 255 passes for 3,294 yards and 35 touchdowns, including a game-saving 42-yard catch on a pass from quarterback Kenny “Snake” Stabler and a 10-yard scoring catch from Stabler in the second overtime to win the famed “Ghost to the Post Game” in the 1977 playoffs against the Baltimore Colts.
Casper also fell on Stabler’s “fumble” in the end zone to cap “The Holy Roller” in another memorable finish to beat the San Diego Chargers.
The Raiders can only hope that Mayer becomes as much a part of their lore as Casper.
Round 1 No. 7 overall pick: Tyree Wilson, DE, Texas Tech
Round 2 No. 35 overall pick: Michael Mayer, TE, Notre Dame
Round 3 No. 70 overall: Byron Young, DT, Alabama
Round 3 No. 100 overall: Tre Tucker, WR, Cincinnati
Round 4 No. 104 overall: Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland
Round 4 No. 135 overall: Aidan O'Connell, QB, Purdue
Round 5 No. 170 overall: Christopher Smith II, S, Georgia
Round 6 No. 203 overall: Amari Burney, LB, Florida
Round 7 No. 231 overall: Nesta Jade Silvera, DT, Arizona State
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