Raiders, Packers Tried To Claim Swearinger
The Raiders and Packers both submitted a waiver claim on new Cardinals safety D.J. Swearinger, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Ultimately, the Cardinals won out due to their top priority and 3-12 record, but Swearinger had interest before the claim was finalized. 
Swearinger was in the midst of a productive campaign before the Redskins cut him loose this week. The 27-year-old compiled 53 tackles, one sack, three forced fumbles, and four interceptions in 15 games and the metrics at Pro Football Focus were also high on him this season. Swearinger presently ranks 11th out of 86 eligible safeties.
Swearinger was openly critical of the Redskins’ decision making this year and his vocalness likely led to his release. In any event, Washington’s loss is Arizona’s gain. The Cardinals have secured a Pro Bowl alternate on the cheap and they’ll only be on the hook for paying his $176K paycheck in the final week of the season. After that, the Cards have the ability to keep him for $4.25MM in 2019 or let him go without penalty since that salary is non-guaranteed.
Listing Raiders' 2019 Options
- Although the Raiders have discussed playing at the San Francisco Giants’ AT&T Stadium next season, the team has not picked a 2019 home yet. Listing possibilities, NBC Sports Bay Area suggests Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto, Calif. The Cardinal’s home field seats just more than 50,000 and is located a bit south of the 49ers’ Levi’s Stadium. This has not been mentioned as a consideration, and many cities have emerged as such thus far. The NFL wants the Raiders to decide on their 2019 home by Super Bowl LIII.
Phillip Lindsay Has Ligament Damage In Wrist
Broncos rookie running back Phillip Lindsay‘s season came to an end on Monday, as tests revealed he suffered ligament damage in his injured wrist vs. the Raiders, the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweets. In addition to missing the season finale, Lindsay will also likely be sidelined for the Pro Bowl. 
The damage to the ligaments are described as significant, and he will receive a second opinion on a possible scaphoid fracture according to 9News’ Mike Klis (Twitter link). The duration for his recovery has not been outlined but is expected to be a lengthy one, as surgery is likely.
“I was just going through a play and it got hit and it just got numb a little bit,” Lindsay said. “They took precaution and felt that I should stay out … they decided it was probably smart for me to sit out.”
It’s a crushing blow for Lindsay, who became the first undrafted rookie offensive player to be selected to the Pro Bowl after rushing for 1,037 yards and nine touchdowns in 2018. After splitting carries as a change-of-pace back early in the season, the Colorado product moved into a prominent role with his first start in Week 8 and held the role through Week 16. He finished the season with three 100-yard rushing efforts and touchdown runs in six of his final nine games.
One of the league’s best bargains, Lindsay is signed through the 2020 season at a total remaining salary of $1.2MM.
London A 2019 Option For The Raiders?
With the Raiders’ relationship with Oakland dissolved and a year left before they can complete their move to Las Vegas, the team is broaching out-of-the-box options for home games in 2019. One of those options could include playing in London, according to Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer (Twitter link). 
Glazer called the potential move “out of left field,” but mentioned that other owners have discussed the possibility with the team. The NFL has long toyed with the possibility of a franchise calling London home, and this would be the greatest test run the league could hope for.
What the move would look like for scheduling purposes is yet to be determined, but it is sure to be a hectic travel situation with the team playing its games in the AFC West. One possibility that Glazer mentioned would have the Raiders playing four consecutive home games, followed by four straight road contests.
One person who would not be happy with playing the games in London would be Raiders head coach Jon Gruden, according to Des Bieler of The Washington Post. When the team played the Seahawks in London this year, the coach said:
“I get claustrophobic. My son was a weightlifter, and he won a powerlifting competition in Belarus. I had to fly 14 hours. I had to fly home 14 hours. I had vertigo for a month. I couldn’t even lay down, the house was spinning. I am hoping I don’t get vertigo. I’m not a great traveler. I’ll be honest with you. I hate it. I’m not good. I’m concerned. I’m more worried about that than our goal-line offense right now.”
Though it may seem like an outside shot, the fact the Raiders have discussed the move with other owners suggest the team is seriously considering the move and would have approval from at least some of the 31 owners needed to make the move. The team has also been linked with a host of other locations, including Levi’s Stadium and AT&T Park.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/24/18
Here are the NFL’s minor moves on Christmas Eve:
Dallas Cowboys
- Activated off IR: CB C.J. Goodwin
- Waived: WR Lance Lenoir
Oakland Raiders
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Paul Butler, S Dallin Leavitt
- Placed on IR: CB Daryl Worley
- Waived: DE Damontre Moore
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted from practice squad: LB LaTroy Lewis
- Placed on IR: TE Cole Wick
Jerry Reese Turns Down Interview With Raiders
Longtime Giants general manager Jerry Reese has turned down the opportunity to interview for the Raiders’ GM position, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Reese served as Big Blue’s GM from 2007-17, and he had been with the organization since 1994. He became one of the most respected executives in the league during that time, and he constructed two Super Bowl champions, but the latter part of his tenure was marred by a series of missteps that ultimately led to his ouster.
Nonetheless, it makes sense that he would be a top target for teams seeking a new GM. Likewise, it makes sense that someone of Reese’s caliber would turn down overtures from the Raiders, as it currently seems that whoever serves as the Oakland GM right now would be little more than a figurehead and a yes man for head coach Jon Gruden. Gruden’s second stint with the Raiders has already been sullied by frequent reports of internal discord, and it is likely that the club will have difficulty attracting an established GM candidate.
In other Raiders news, the team has fired strength and conditioning coach Tom Shaw, according to Schefter. Gruden brought Shaw to Oakland shortly after he was hired earlier this year, but the marriage did not last long. Shaw, who previously worked on speed and conditioning with the Patriots and Saints, and who trained athletes at his facility at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports in Orlando, was recently told by one of Gruden’s administrators that his time with the Raiders was up.
Although Shaw’s dismissal is not a high-profile move, it only strengthens the narrative that there is far too much turmoil within the franchise, and Gruden is clearly at the epicenter of that turmoil. Shaw becomes the fifth strength coach that Gruden has fired during his time as an NFL head coach.
Raiders In Discussions With San Francisco Giants About 2019 Home Site
The city of San Francisco does not have an NFL team playing within its city limits, with 49ers home games being played at the Santa Clara-based Levi’s Stadium.
It’s possible that may change in 2019. The Raiders have engaged in discussions with the San Francisco Giants about playing their home games next season at AT&T Park.
“There has been initial interest expressed in exploring the opportunity of the Raiders playing at AT&T Park … many details would need to be figured out,” the MLB team said in a statement. “The Giants want to do what’s best for Bay Area fans and would be open to the concept just as we hosted Cal Football in 2011 when Memorial Stadium in Berkeley was being renovate.”
With Oakland suing the Raiders, the franchise’s 2019 home is much less certain than it once was. The team’s Las Vegas domed stadium is not scheduled to be ready until 2020, and this suit may scuttle the Raiders’ intentions of playing one more season in Oakland.
A few cities have reached out to the team, Raiders president Marc Badain said (via Vince Sapienza of Fox 5, on Twitter), adding the Raiders intend to speak to a few sites about a solution they hope doesn’t disrupt the team much. Mark Davis said all options remain open.
Davis and Giants CEO Larry Baer were part of discussions for San Francisco to host the 2024 Olympics years back, per ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez. While AT&T Park has been mentioned previously, Gutierrez notes other cities — Reno, Nev., Glendale, Ariz., San Diego and a temporary partnership with the 49ers at Levi’s Stadium — remain in play. Oakland also remains an option, in the event a deal can still be brokered. Portland and Seattle have also been mentioned as stopgap solutions, but the NFL appears to view the best solution being the Raiders staying in the Bay Area.
A possible stumbling block to the Raiders playing at the National League stadium is the 49ers having territorial rights to San Francisco. The 49ers would need to consent to the Raiders playing at AT&T Park, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The 49ers have previously expressed that they would be open to the Raiders sharing their Santa Clara stadium but have not addressed a possible scenario where the Raiders play in San Francisco. Davis has not shown much enthusiasm for sharing a stadium with the 49ers.
AT&T Park, which can hold 45,000 fans in an expanded football capacity, is a much closer trek from Oakland compared to Levi’s Stadium. In addition to housing the Cal Golden Bears in 2011, the MLB venue was home for the XFL’s San Francisco Demons in 2001. A bowl game (an event now known as the Redbox Bowl) was also played there from 2002-13. Interestingly, the bowl games and Cal’s home contests in 2011 featured both teams standing on the same sideline, Gutierrez points out.
Raiders’ Donald Penn Unlikely To Play
An official decision on whether to bring Donald Penn back off injured reserve won’t come for a couple days, head coach Jon Gruden says. However, Gruden does not anticipate the veteran offensive tackle playing again this season (Twitter link via Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area). 
[RELATED: Raiders Designate Donald Penn For Return]
Penn was designated for return earlier this month, but that was a perplexing move by the Raiders on a few different fronts. First, the move blocked Marshawn Lynch from potentially playing in the club’s Christmas Eve home finale, which might have bought them some good will in Oakland. Secondly, the Raiders would risk being stuck with the entirety of Penn’s 2019 salary if he were to suffer a serious injury down the stretch.
As it stands, the Raiders have an escape hatch on the 35-year-old’s deal. If they want to release Penn in the offseason, they can 86 his contract with just $1.75MM left in dead money.
At 3-11, there’s little reason for the Raiders to roll the dice on Penn’s health, so he’s unlikely to see the field for the club’s final two games against the Broncos and Chiefs.
Mark Davis Discusses Trades
- Raiders owner Mark Davis says he doesn’t regret trading edge defender Khalil Mack nor wide receiver Amari Cooper, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link). Oakland received a bevy of picks for Mack and a first-round selection for Cooper, and will now have three first-rounders in the 2019 draft. However, both the Bears (who acquired Mack) and the Cowboys (who received Cooper) are now headed for the postseason, meaning the value of their picks that were sent to the Raiders has decreased.
Jets Place Brandon Shell, Jeremiah Attaochu On IR
The Jets have placed offensive tackle Brandon Shell and linebacker Jeremiah Attaochu on injured reserve, the club announced today. To fill its two newly-opened roster spots, New York claimed linebacker Emmanuel Lamur off waivers from the Raiders and promoted linebacker Anthony Wint from the practice squad.
Shell, 26, was a fifth-round pick in the 2016 draft and become a full-time starter along the Jets’ offensive line in 2017. While New York’s front five ranks 31st in pass protection and 32nd in run blocking according to Football Outsiders‘ metrics, Shell hasn’t been to blame. Pro Football Focus‘ grades don’t label Shell as an All-Pro, but he ranks a middling 55th among 83 qualifying tackles. He’ll be back in 2019 at a minimum salary.
Attaochu, for his part, has been long on talent but short on production during his five-year NFL career. Drafted out of Georgia Tech as the 50th overall pick in 2014, Attaochu managed only one season as a starter for the Chargers from 2014-17. Injuries have been a problem, as Attaochu played in just 12 total games over his final two years with Los Angeles, but he’s never posted results even when on the field. In 10 games with Gang Green, Attaochu played 22% of the club’s snap and put up two sacks.
Lamur, 29, followed defensive coordinator Paul Guenther from Cincinnati to Oakland this offseason, inking a one-year deal for the minimum to join the Raiders. In nine games (four starts) with Oakland, Lamur registered 13 tackles while playing on roughly a quarter of the team’s defensive snaps. He’ll offer depth and special teams prowess in New York.