The Oakland Raiders were hampered by injuries in their 33-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football, losing long snapper Andrew DePaola in addition to defensive tackles Justin Ellis and P.J. Hall.
Unlike DePaola, Ellis and Hall played through their respective foot and ankle injuries and were both on the field for the team’s final defensive snap.
Despite this, the team still went out and signed two veteran defensive tackles in Johnathan Hankins and Clinton McDonald to prepare for the possibility that Ellis and Hall will be sidelined for a significant amount of time.
To make room for McDonald on the roster, the Raiders will reportedly place Ellis on injured reserve with a designation to return later in the 2018 NFL season, according to Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Raiders are placing NT Justin Ellis on injured reserve, source said. They plan to activate him later this year. Season not considered over for veteran run stopper. Move clears roster spot for DT Clinton McDonald.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) September 13, 2018
While the Raiders will lose Ellis’ services for the time being, the hope is that he will be able to return to the practice field in six weeks and potentially be activated after that.
McDonald, an eight-year veteran, spent the last four seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he accumulated 142 tackles and 13.5 sacks in 45 games (34 starts).
A seventh round draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2010, the 31-year-old also has experience in Raiders defensive coordinator Paul Guenther’s scheme.
The Raiders previously brought McDonald in for a free agent visit this past March, but he ultimately elected to sign with the Denver Broncos instead. He was later cut by the organization at the end of preseason play.
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