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With the third preseason game in the books, the Oakland Raiders are just about done in terms of who makes the team and who doesn't. The 53-man roster will be finalized on September 4, just over a week before the Raiders open up the season. Now, who will be on the team and who won't be? Hit the jump for my roster prediction.
Keep in mind that this is just my own prediction. Feel free to post your own in the thread. I will post the players at each position in a depth chart format.
Offense:
QB (3): Jason Campbell; Bruce Gradkowski; Kyle Boller
HB (4): Michael Bush; Darren McFadden; Michael Bennett; Rock Cartwright
FB (1): Marcel Reece
WR (6): Louis Murphy; Darrius Heyward-Bey; Chaz Schilens; Johnnie Lee Higgins; Jacoby Ford; Nick Miller
TE (2): Zach Miller; Brandon Myers
LT (2): Mario Henderson; Bruce Campbell
LG (2): Robert Gallery; Khalif Barnes
C (3): Jared Veldheer; Samson Satele; Chris Morris
RG (1): Cooper Carlisle
RT (2): Langston Walker; Erik PearsDefense:
DE (4): Lamarr Houston; Matt Shaughnessy; Jay Richardson; Chris Cooper
DT (4): Richard Seymour; Tommy Kelly; John Henderson; Desmond Bryant
OLB (4): Trevor Scott; Kamerion Wimbley; Thomas Howard; Quentin Groves
MLB (2): Rolando McClain; Ricky Brown
CB (5): Nnamdi Asomugha; Chris Johnson; Stanford Routt; Jeremy Ware; Walter McFadden
S (5): Tyvon Branch; Michael Huff; Mike Mitchell; Hiram Eugene; Stevie BrownSpecial Teams:
K (1): Sebastian Janikowski
P (1): Shane Lechler
LS (1): Jon Condo
There aren't really any controversial picks. I think most of the roster is already done. There are some things we can discuss, however. Maybe there's some internal discussion concerning the running back position considering Bush's injury. That would open the door for Cartwright to stay on the team. He is versatile because he can play some fullback even though his skill set is similar to Reece's and he can play special teams. Among the wide receivers we shouldn't retain are Yamon Figurs, Shaun Bodiford and Todd Watkins. One could stick around due to Schilens' knee getting scoped, but I don't think so. Now that Laveranues Coles is available, that could be bad news for someone else. For the offensive line, I think the 10 guys I have up there will be around with Pears maybe being the exception. I listed the guys at their positions loosely; our guys are versatile so the specific position in which I listed them is irrelevant if you were worried about that. Defensively, with the team only carrying five cornerbacks by my estimation, that opens the door for a fifth safety. I narrowly chose Brown over Jerome Boyd for that spot, but I really honestly don't think it's that big of a deal.
Obviously this doesn't include the practice squad and injured reserve, but what are your thoughts?