NAPA, Calif . -- A daily review of the hot topics coming out of Oakland Raiders training camp:
Give the offense the win for the day. Closing out the first-team two-minute drills, quarterback Matt Schaub went through his progressions and spied Denarius Moore going right to left across the back of the end zone and hit the receiver with a strike in stride, Moore extended has hands just above his head to haul in the pass. It was as impressive a throw and catch as has been seen in camp thus far. Then, with Derek Carr running the second-team offense and the Raiders inside the 10-yard line, Carr dropped back to pass, felt the pressure coming and took off for the right pylon. Now, no one was going to hit him, but his decisiveness and quickness were impressive. It was the final play of Wednesday’s practice.
Rod Streater returned to practice after sitting out Monday with a concussion and pulled a fast one early on by wearing shorts over his padded pants. “I’m good,” he said after practice. “Not foggy. Just had to go through the whole process. But I’ll be out there hitting tomorrow.”
During 9-on-9 drills, new converted defensive end LaMarr Woodley was an absolute menace. The longtime former Pittsburgh Steelers 3-4 linebacker was giving second-year right tackle Menelik Watson the business and getting into the offensive backfield with regularity.
Tony Bergstrom, the first draft pick of Reggie McKenzie-Dennis Allen era, was the second-team center for the first time in his career during team drills. Bergstrom was a tackle at Utah but was converted to guard as a rookie. He missed last season after undergoing Lisfranc surgery. Bergstrom looked comfortable snapping the ball until Carr fumbled one. Then Bergstrom sailed another over the rookie QB’s head.
Veteran Khalif Barnes supplanted rookie Gabe Jackson at left guard on the first-team offense, seemingly solidifying his hold on a roster spot as a swing lineman. However, Jackson came in at right guard later in practice and was the epitome of a road grader in the 2-minute drill. Jackson was filling in for Austin Howard, whose back stiffened up on him. Allen did not consider Howard’s tweak a major issue, but did say that he thought practice was not “crisp.”
Fullback Marcel Reece, who played receiver in college, showed off some of those skills when he went up and over Tyvon Branch to haul in a Schaub pass along the left sideline. Allen suggested that Reece’s 17-pound weight loss might have also contributed to him being more explosive and acrobatic on the play.
Receivers Greg Little (hamstring) and Juron Criner (hamstring) both sat out practice, as did safety Shelton Johnson (hamstring) and linebackers Kaluka Maiava (hamstring) and Marshall McFadden (hip), while tight end Jake Murphy returned from a head issue. Veteran defensive lineman Antonio Smith, who underwent sports hernia surgery this summer, left practice early with a groin issue. Also, tight end Nick Kasa (hip) was activated off the physically unable to perform list.