Oakland Raiders Week 11 Injury Report: Raiders' Cornerback Woes Continue
By Shawn Lealos
The Oakland Raiders got a break with their bye week just when they needed it. After having a large number of injuries on their secondary, the Raiders seem to finally be healing up. Oakland got a big win right before their bye to improve their record to 4-5, but they have to get healthy and start winning more games. The Raiders moved to second place in the AFC West, but are two games back from the Kansas City Chiefs and have a losing record, which hurts their Wild Card chances.
This week, the Raiders play the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, so they need all the bodies they can get on the field. Here is a look at the Oakland Raiders injury report for their Week 11 game.
Raiders Secondary Starting To Come Into Focus
For most of the season, the Oakland Raiders have had two or more cornerbacks listed on the injury report. Before the Raiders' bye week, David Amerson, Gareon Conley and Demetrius McCray were all ruled out while safety Karl Joseph was listed as questionable. Coming off the bye, Amerson is still out, but no other Raiders player is listed on the injury report in the secondary.
The bad news is that it isn't as great as it looks. Conley was moved from the injury report to Injured Reserve and the rookie won't play at all this season. Head coach Jack Del Rio said that it was time to look to next season for his contributions to the team.
As for Demetrius McCray, the Raiders realized he wasn't returning as well. They ended up waiving him and coming to an injury settlement back on Nov. 9.
Of the three cornerbacks that suffered through the season injured, only Amerson remains, and he was upgraded from out to doubtful this week. However, things are getting better.
The Raiders only had three cornerbacks active to play against the Miami Dolphins before the bye week. They are compensating for their injury losses by switching to a cover-2 more often, something that Sean Smith specializes in. First-round pick Karl Joseph is also ready to start at free safety and second-round pick Obi Melifonwu returned before the break from Injured Reserve and is ready to take on a huge role.
Raiders Getting Healthy
The best news is that the Oakland Raiders' injury report is shrinking. The only other two major injuries are to Cory James, who should play despite his knee injury; and offensive tackle Marshall Newhouse, who was also listed as questionable. The injury to Newhouse is more worrisome as the Raiders need him in the lineup to protect Derek Carr. Newhouse has a hip and quad injury and if he can't play, Vadal Alexander will start in his place.
Oakland Raiders Injury Report
Questionable
- Gabe Jackson (G) - foot - limited practice
- Cory James (LB) - knee - limited practice
- Marshall Newhouse (OL) - knee - limited practice
- Jamize Olawale (FB/RB) - hamstring - limited practice
Doubtful
- David Amerson (CB) - foot - did not practice