The Las Vegas Raiders are gaining some momentum at the end of the year and are pushing for a playoff spot. They’ve won their last two games and will make the playoffs if they can win the next two. However, there could be complications as the season starts to wrap up.
On Monday, the Raiders announced that Casey Hayward, Cory Littleton, Patrick Onwuasor, Denzel Perryman, Darius Philon and LB K.J. Wright are all being placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
We have placed CB Casey Hayward, LB Cory Littleton, LB Patrick Onwuasor, LB Denzel Perryman, DT Darius Philon and LB K.J. Wright on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
The Raiders say everybody on the roster is fully vaccinated so it remains possible that all these players can play on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts but it’s not guaranteed. If none of them can play, then Las Vegas will be missing four linebackers, including three who have played significant snaps and have been named to Pro Bowls in Littleton, Perryman and Wright.
Nick Kwiatkoski and Nicholas Morrow are already currently on Injured Reserve so the team is lean at the position. With the Raiders set to play an elite running back in Jonathan Taylor, things could get ugly if they don’t get their linebackers back.
Former Raiders starting linebacker Kirk Morrison took note of the roster issues and petitioned for a spot. He even let the team know he’d be ready to go immediately.
He doubled down and said he was “just a call away.”
@raiders I’m just a call away 💪🏾💪🏾💪🏾
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Morrison Is an Underrated Raider
Morrison’s tweets are most likely a joke. He’s 39-years-old and works for ESPN now. It’s hard to imagine he’s ready to play in an NFL game right now. While it’s unlikely we’ll ever see Morrison on the football field again, he doesn’t always get a ton of credit for what he did when he was playing.
Morrison was one of the most underrated players of the 2000s for the Raiders. Over his five years with the teams, he had over 115 combined tackles in each season. In 2007, he had 122 tackles with four interceptions and a sack.
Those numbers should’ve been good enough to get him in the Pro Bowl but the Raiders didn’t get a lot of love in those days. After he left the team, they had struggled to find consistent play at linebacker until Perryman had a breakout year this season.
Colts Also Dealing With COVID-19 Issues
While the Raiders have to be disappointed with the additions to the Reserve/COVID-19 list, their Week 17 opponent has its own set of issues. On Monday, the Colts added Jahleel Addae, T.J. Carrie, Malik Jefferson, Marlon Mack and Braden Smith to the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
We have placed S Jahleel Addae, CB T.J. Carrie, LB Malik Jefferson, RB Marlon Mack and T Braden Smith on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
Star offensive lineman Quenton Nelson and Pro Bowl linebacker Darius Leonard are already on the list and neither are vaccinated. That means they won’t be playing against the Raiders. Starting safety Khari Willis is also unvaccinated and test positive. He will not play on Sunday.
As bad as the Raiders COVID-19 issues are, the Colts have it far worse. They are missing Pro Bowl-level players on offense and defense. This is another winnable game for the silver and black.
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Ex-Raiders Starting LB Petitions for Roster Spot Amid Issues