Raiders General Manager Reggie McKenzie has talked about the “miles and miles of research” the team did before selecting cornerback Gareon Conley. Therefore, the news Monday that a Cuyahoga County Grand Junior declined charges on the 24th overall pick was not a surprise to the Raiders.
“This smile tell you anything?,” McKenzie said Monday, via Jimmy Durkin of the Bay Area News Group. “I’m excited for Gareon. It’s tough on the young man like that to go through this and I’m excited for Gareon and the Raiders, for the process to work. We’re excited. Now we can move forward.”
Cleveland Police had Conley under investigation since a woman accused the former Ohio State standout of raping her in a Cleveland hotel three weeks before the NFL Draft. Conley repeatedly has declared his innocence.
The Raiders have maintained they were comfortable with their decision based on their extensive investigation.
“I don’t want to get into the details of who and what and all that,” McKenzie said, “but we just felt good going into it with all the information we got that it would come out this way. I’m just glad it worked out.”
Conley, 22, signed his deal Friday night, but he remains on the physically unable to perform list with shin splints.
“It could be a few days,” McKenzie said. “I don’t know particularly. Once he starts running and not feeling pain, it shouldn’t take that long. We’re just going to give him some time to heal up, and we’ll get him out there.”