ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -Oakland safety Jarrod Cooper was waived on Monday and intends to retire, one of a flurry of moves the Raiders made to deal with injuries and an upcoming deadline for roster cuts.
Oakland also waived linebacker Grant Irons and defensive end Greg Spires, and placed receiver Drew Carter, fullback Oren O’Neal and cornerback John Bowie on injured reserve with season-ending injuries. The Raiders also claimed fullback Luke Lawton off waivers and signed safety Marviel Underwood.
The Raiders reduced their roster to 76 players, plus international practice squad player Mauricio Lopez, who does not count against roster limits. Oakland needs to be down to 75 players by Tuesday, and then the final cut to 53 comes Saturday. Defensive back Nate Lyles, an undrafted free agent out of Virginia, was in camp for a tryout Monday.
Cooper had been a valuable special teams player in 3 1/2 seasons in Oakland, but had fallen behind rookie Tyvon Branch. Raiders spokesman John Herrera said Cooper planned to retire but hadn’t filed the paperwork yet so he had to be waived. Cooper played seven years in the NFL, going to the Super Bowl with Carolina following the 2003 season.
Carter and O’Neal both went down with devastating knee injuries in the first quarter of Saturday’s exhibition loss to Arizona. Bowie did not play at all this preseason due to a knee injury, the latest setback for the player acquired in the Randy Moss deal a year ago.
The Raiders selected Bowie with the fourth-round pick they got from New England for Moss last year. He played just two games as a rookie and now is out for his entire second season. Moss had 98 catches for 1,493 yards and an NFL-record 23 touchdowns for the Patriots last season.
Lawton will have a chance to make the Oakland roster as the backup to Justin Griffith after being released on Saturday by Philadelphia. The Eagles acquired him in the offseason from Indianapolis for a conditional seventh-round pick.
Lawton played in 11 games last season for the Colts at running back and on special teams. He had five rushes for 13 yards and four receptions for 29 yards, including a one-yard reception against Jacksonville on Dec. 2 for his lone career touchdown. Lawton also played four games for the New York Jets in 2005.
Following the injury to O’Neal, the Raiders had only one proven fullback on the roster. Marcel Reece, an undrafted free agent out of Washington, was a converted wide receiver just learning the position.
Oakland did not sign a receiver to replace Carter, leaving Javon Walker and Ronald Curry as the only experienced wideouts on the roster for now. Rookie Arman Shields, who has been sidelined much of camp with a knee injury, did return to practice on Monday.
The entire backup group at wide receiver has just seven career catches. Johnnie Lee Higgins had six receptions as a rookie, and Chris McFoy has one career catch.
Underwood was a fourth-round pick by Green Bay in 2005. He played 16 games as a rookie but has not appeared in a game after tearing two ligaments in his right knee in an exhibition game in 2006.
Add A Comment