It’s official. Training camp in Napa is done and Donald Penn didn’t take part, remaining on the reserve/did not report list. He has been holding out in a contract dispute that had officially begun on report day July 28, some three weeks ago.
In total it was 14 training camp days that Penn missed. The fine for missing camp practices is $40K per day, which means should the Raiders choose to exercise it, Penn would receive a $560K fine for missing all of camp.
A Pro Bowler in 2016, Penn was to be paid a base salary of $5.8 million with a cap hit of $7.15 million this season. That puts him as the 19th highest paid left tackle in the league. He is said to want to be paid top ten money, which would have him around $11 million.
Without him, the Raiders moved right tackle Marshall Newhouse to left tackle and put Vadal Alexander at right tackle. And the season is a little over three weeks away.
“Where I’m at right now is I have to get us ready to go out and beat Tennessee,” Mike Tice said Wednesday of preparing for the season opener. “So right now, I have Marshall on the left and I have Vadal on the right and I have David [Sharpe] doing a little bit more each day, playing both sides. That’s what we have. I can’t sit here and wonder when DP is going to come back. . . That’s reality right now. I can’t think that there’s going to be something else there until it’s there.”
There are three more preseason games remaining for the Raiders. and it sure would be beneficial to the overall line play if Penn were to return soon. Even if he showed up tomorrow, he wouldn’t see the field in the second preseason game.
The starters play the most time in the third preseason game and it would be beneficial to Marshall Newhouse if he could line up at right tackle with the line for an exhibition game or two before the season. But right now, there’s no telling if/when Penn will be back on the field. That could hurt the Raiders chances of making a Super Bowl run this season.
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