Luke Willson loses tight end battle, cut by Raiders

Luke Willson came in as the favorite to land the Raiders blocking tight end job. Then the team drafted Foster Moreau. Even still, there was room for two tight ends behind starter Darren Waller. Should the Raiders keep three tight ends, Willson will not be one of them. The veteran tight end was released Friday according to ESPN’s Mike Garafolo.

Willson was featured a few times on HBO’s Hard Knocks, especially when the Canada native traveled with the Raiders to play in Winnipeg in the third game of the preseason.

Despite his likable personality, and connection with offensive line coach Tom Cable from their time in Seattle, Willson needed to show up at least a little bit in the passing game and he just didn’t. His release could mean Derek Carrier grabs the third tight end spot, though that’s not guaranteed. He hasn’t shown a lot either, though he did catch a touchdown in week three of the preseason.