After some issues over the last couple of weeks, the Las Vegas Raiders roster is starting to stabilize ahead of the regular-season finale against the Los Angeles Chargers. One of the deepest groups on the team right now is linebacker. With the recent emergence of rookie Divine Deablo and strong play from veterans like Denzel Perryman and K.J. Wright, the team doesn’t need much more depth at the position as the season ends.
That led to there being no more room for Will Compton. The veteran linebacker was only recently signed to the active roster but hasn’t played in the last three games due to the death of his mother and then testing positive for COVID-19. He was set to return against the Chargers but that won’t be happening. Compton announced on Twitter that the Raiders have released him.
Emergency press conference: I have been released from the Raiders
Just a minor setback for a major comeback. #year9
There was some chatter that this was his last season in the league. It remains to be seen if getting released could complicate things. In his video, Compton did make it clear that if the Raiders make it to the playoffs and need more depth, that he would be happy to rejoin the team. Considering all the uncertainty there has been in the NFL this season, it’s possible Las Vegas may need to bring him back at some point.
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Rich Bisaccia Praises LBs for Play vs. Colts
On Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, the Raiders needed to win keep their playoff hopes strong. The biggest test was going to be slowing down star running back Johnathan Taylor. Perryman and Wright didn’t practice all week as they were on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. While Taylor did rush for 108 yards, the Raiders’ defense didn’t let him control the game. Interim head coach Rich Bisaccia praised the players who didn’t practice all week but stepped up when the team needed them to.
“We can’t say enough about those guys,” Bisaccia said Sunday. “The National Football League is a job, and those guys do everything they possibly can when they are at home, or not at our facility, to keep themselves in whatever cardio condition they can.
“Our linebackers went through multiple meetings yesterday with (assistant coach) Richard Smith. I think it might have been marathon meetings with those guys to get caught up. … It is so exciting to see Denzel Perryman, K.J. and get [Darius] Philon back.”
Bisaccia Praises Deablo
One of the pleasant surprises in recent weeks has been rookie third-round pick Divine Deablo. He played safety in college so it was expected that it would take a year before he was ready to be a full-time linebacker. He’s played so well that he’s earned a starting spot in recent weeks. Bisaccia was also impressed with his performance against the Colts.
“I thought Deablo played pretty well,” Bisaccia said. “We all thought he was going to have a pick (in the game). We went through a little scenario in practice on Friday, had a little fun with Deablo and Derek Carr.
“[Deablo] is a guy that keeps improving week in and week out. You can see him improving as well throughout the game. We brought Kyle Wilber back, which enabled us to keep Divine off the special teams and concentrate a little bit on defense. It paid off for all of us.”
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Raiders Cut Fan Favorite Defender, Says He’d Return for Playoffs