Kaluka Maiava not practicing with hamstring injury

No sooner did I point out the key role Kaluka Maiava will be asked to play this year but he goes out with an injury. It happened at the end of the first day of training camp according to Dennis Allen and it went unnoticed by those of us covering the team until he was unaccounted for on the practice field today.

The key role Maiava was lining up to play was that of backup middle linebacker and special teams ace. With him out of the lineup, the Raiders will have to have other players step into that role.

"Well, I think we're looking at that as we move forward," said Dennis Allen. "I think we've worked Marshall McFadden in there. We've worked Bojay [Filimoeatu] in there. Both those guys have done well not only these first few days of training camp, but they had a nice spring. So again, that's one of the things that I was excited about coming into camp, is that we do have some depth at the linebacker position. I think those guys will come in and fill in nicely, and hopefully, we'll get Kaluka out here sooner rather than later."

Dennis Allen didn't seem overly concerned with the injury which would suggest it is just a strain. It could still keep him out some time, though.

Maiava was signed during the 2013 off-season to compete at weakside linebacker. After playing mostly on special teams early on, he suffered rib injury in week nine against the Eagles and was later placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the season.

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