The Oakland Raiders announced on Tuesday that they have signed defensive back Makinton Dorleant and cornerback Joshua Holsey and waived cornerback Hamp Cheevers and punter Johnny Townsend.
Perhaps the biggest surprise there was waiving Townsend, who the Raiders invested a lot into after drafted him in the fifth round in 2018 out of Florida.
Townsend appeared in all 16 contests as the Raiders punter last season and punted 70 times for 3,022 yards (43.2 average) while pinning the opponent inside the 20-yard line 17 times. He was in an open competition with undrafted rookie A.J. Cole, and it appears that one preseason game was enough for them to decide to goal with Cole over Townsend for the team’s punting and holding duties this season.
Dorleant originally signed to the Raiders practice squad last December, so he is familiar with the organization he is returning to. He has also spent time in the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs and Green Bay Packers organizations, appearing in four games throughout the course of his career.
Holsey was originally drafted in the seventh round by the Washington Redskins in 2017 and joins the Raiders after two seasons in Washington. In 13 career games with the Redskins, Holsey mainly played special teams but also recorded two tackles and one fumble recovery on defense.
Cheevers just signed with the Raiders earlier this week, so he did not get to make much of an impression before being waived.
