Raiders will get an extra leg up tonight

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The Raiders are expected to sign free-agent kicker Aaron Elling today, a league source confirmed Thursday night.

Elling will fill in for Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski in tonight's exhibition-season opener against the 49ers at The Coliseum.

Janikowski "tweaked" his left kicking leg during two-a-days Wednesday, Raiders coach Lane Kiffin said, and is doubtful for the game. Elling must pass a physical before the deal is done.

The Raiders didn't have another kicker on the roster, opting to use a JUGS machine to give Janikowski rest during practice.

Elling, left-footed, can also punt. That will allow him to spell Pro Bowl punter Shane Lechler, who sits out most camp practices and retreats to the fieldhouse for conditioning work.

Elling, 30, got training camp gigs in Atlanta, Jacksonville and Cincinnati last year before tearing right-knee ligaments making a preseason tackle with the Bengals. He's bounced between eight teams since 2002, and scored 102 points in his second season with the Vikings.

Briefly: ... Don't look for Raiders running back Darren McFadden to return kicks - at least not yet. Tyvon Branch will handle kickoffs and Johnnie Lee Higgins will take punts.

 

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Raiders prove slow to thin their herd



-- The Raiders' front office has been pretty quiet the past two weeks in Napa. No hopefuls have been added to the roster, no strugglers have been subtracted, all which means one of two things.

Either they are convinced the roster is exponentially better since going 4-12 last year, or they're counting on a handful of pricey free-agent signings to compensate for a significant drop-off after the top 25 or so players.

Ticket-buying fans can draw their own first impressions tonight when the Raiders host the 49ers in their exhibition-season opener at the Coliseum. The game will be televised on tape delay because it isn't a sellout.

Raiders coach Lane Kiffin said the first-teamers will exit in waves during the first quarter. After that, it's time for many of the backups to show some marked improvement.

If not, Kiffin has no problem shaking up the roster midcamp, both to encourage competition and to upgrade the backup options.

After all, competition is Kiffin's perpetual theme, and training camp is the best time to explore as many options as possible.

"Yeah, Saturday and Sunday are days when there can be some tryouts," Kiffin said when asked if now is the time to give new players a look.

"Some guys who maybe don't perform very well in the game ... we've given them some time to show us. That definitely could be a possibility."

The Raiders have not made a transaction since July 26, the first day of practice, when they released running back LaMont Jordan and re-signed camp quarterback Jeff Otis. Only four other NFL teams have stood pat since camp started.

It isn't necessarily because Kiffin is enamored with his current 80. He has openly criticized underperforming players on a regular basis, whether it's a starter like receiver Javon Walker or a valued draft pick like offensive lineman Mario Henderson.

The strong-side linebacker competition has been a disappointment from top to bottom. The cornerback depth is a concern for a team that carried seven out of camp last year. The interior defensive line is injury-prone with little, if any, safety net.

The current 80 isn't even altogether healthy. Kiffin needed to bring a list of missing players to Wednesday's news conference so he wouldn't leave any of the 12 hurt or resting players out.

Backup offensive tackle Mark Wilson broke his leg last week, and he still hasn't been replaced on the roster. Outside linebacker Grant Irons and safety Greg Wesley have barely practiced because of lingering injuries.

Compare this to last year, when the Raiders cut 10 players and signed nine by Aug. 8, with seven more transactions before cut day. When players didn't impress quickly last year, they were swiftly replaced. When potential backups stayed hurt, they were sent off with injury settlements.

Some of that was to push players to work harder. It was also to make sure there were enough healthy bodies to get through two-a-days without working starters into the ground.

Tonight's exhibition game could be what provides the impetus for change where change is needed. The backups will play three-fourths of the game. Coaches will see them play at full-speed with tackling for the first time all year. The current holes will become all the more glaring.

"Some guys ... they're doing what they can in this format, but now they've got to go to the next level," Kiffin said. "That's what's so good about having competition."







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Looking for signals

The quarterbacks' projected playing time tonight:

Raiders

JaMarcus Russell - The future is now, at least for the first two to four series.

Andrew Walter - His rested arm will play well into the third quarter.

Marques Tuiasosopo - Gets a fourth-quarter chance to make a move on Walter.

49ers

J.T. O'Sullivan - Scheduled to play until midway through the second quarter.

Alex Smith - May play the rest of the second quarter and much of the third.

Shaun Hill - Will play the rest of the game.