With training camp coming to an end and the first two preseason games in the books for the Oakland Raiders, head coach Dennis Allen was asked about his thoughts on camp. Allen said the following via Jerry McDonald of InsideBayArea.com:
“I thought it was a good camp,” Allen said after the Raiders’ 19th and final training camp practice Wednesday. “I thought our guys came out here and worked, and I thought we got better. I thought we got a good evaluation of what we have here in this camp right now and we’re going to do everything we can to try and improve this football team.”
At this point in time, Allen is in a tough situation with low expectations and a team dealing with multiple injuries in vital positions on both sides of the football. It’s hard to argue that the loss of left tackle Jared Veldheer to a torn triceps hasn’t been a major blow, but the Raiders have also dealt with injuries all over the field to players like Tracy Porter, Menelik Watson, Latavius Murray, David Ausberry and Jacoby Ford.
Needless to say, there’s some serious concerns heading into the third preseason game against the Chicago Bears. Allen appears to be confident and content with the team’s current situation, but has also expressed concern.
One of the biggest concerns for the Raiders moving forward will be protecting Matt Flynn and creating running lanes for Darren McFadden. Flynn appears to have a tight grip on the starting job under center and McFadden is the feature back, but neither veteran will have much protection with the void left by Veldheer.
It remains to be seen how this team will come together with all the injuries and uncertainty with the Week 1 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts rapidly approaching.
