NFL PLAYER NEWS

Heated competition at linebacker for Raiders

The Sports Xchange

June 18, 2014 at 10:43 pm.

Khalil Mack should bolster the Raiders linebacker corps. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

ALAMEDA, Calif. — Competition is getting hot at outside linebacker for the Oakland Raiders.

Miles Burris, a starting weak side linebacker as a rookie two seasons ago, played ahead of Sio Moore for the second consecutive day Wednesday. Burris was a Raiders’ fourth round draft pick out of San Diego State in 2012. Moore was taken by Oakland in the third round of the 2013 draft and played in 15 games last year, 11 as a starter.

Moore started on the strong side since his rookie year, but that position now belongs to rookie first round pick Khalil Mack, out of Buffalo.

Burris got into a spirited scuffle with left tackle Donald Penn that was broken up by teammates.

While coach Dennis Allen warned not to make too much of a depth chart in minicamp, he did say Burris is a serious contender to start.

Wide receiver James Jones missed practice Wednesday due to an AC sprain sustained Tuesday. He will miss Thursday’s final practice but is expected to be ready for training camp.

–Tackle Emmett Cleary was claimed off waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Wide receiver David Gilreath was waived to make room on the roster.

Notes: Fumbled snaps continued to be a problem for Raiders quarterbacks, with Allen saying minicamp was the perfect time to work out problems. Derek Carr, the second-round draft pick out of Fresno State, operated out of spread formation his last two seasons in college. … Players in addition to Jones that missed practice included linebacker Kevin Burnett, tight end Nick Kasa, defensive tackle Anthony Smith, cornerback D.J. Hayden, guard Lucas Nix and cornerback Carlos Rogers. Only Nix, who had knee surgery, is expected to miss any training camp time when the Raiders report on July 25.

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