The Raiders have had key starters on both sides of the ball sitting practices and games out this preseason, and given the fact that both units are operating under new coaches and therefore new playbooks, this presents a problem.
The Walking Wounded
Richard Seymour—the solid rock upon which this defense needs to be founded—is suffering what head coach Dennis Allen calls "an arthritic knee," according to the Oakland Tribune's Jerry McDonald, who writes that it's "a condition that is likely to need maintenance the rest of the season."
There have been contrary reports about Seymour, though. The San Francisco Chronicle's Vic Tafur reports:
Richard Seymour says he doesn’t have arthritis, just resting his knees. And, obviously, I don’t think he’s playing Thursday either
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 27, 2012
Depending on who you believe, this problem could become a big-time issue for the Raiders going forward.
Starting center Stephen Wisniewski is also experiencing lower-body troubles, and his calf injury has forced the team to consider using Alex Parsons in Week 1, according to McDonald, who reports that Allen said this about his ailing center:
"The calf just hasn't quite responded as fast as I would hope, but we're still within that window of when we thought he might be ready to go (for the opener)."
Aaron Curry has been out all preseason on the PUP list with two ailing knees.
Denarius Moore (hamstring) and Jacoby Ford (ankle) are still out, though the team hopes they'll be ready to go once the regular season gets going.
Finally, there's Sebastian Janikowski's groin injury. He is se...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
