Raiders report: Former first-rounder added to practice squad

All practices at Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center, unless noted:

■ Thursday — Practice, 10:50 a.m.

■ Friday — Practice, 11 a.m.

■ Saturday — Off

■ Sunday — at Steelers, Pittsburgh, 10 a.m.

Quote of the day

Defensive end Maxx Crosby is officially on the radar of Steelers’ quarterback Ben Roethlisberger ahead of their matchup on Sunday in Pittsburgh. Crosby is coming off a dominant performance that earned him AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

But Roethlisberger has known about Crosby since his college days. That’s because the third-year Raiders’ star played football at Eastern Michigan of the Mid-American Conference, the same league that produced Roethlisberger.

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Q: What surprises you about Maxx Crosby?

Roethlisberger: “Nothing. He’s from the MAC. That’s where the best football players come from. He’s a stud.” pic.twitter.com/RsmyYFPzyd

— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) September 15, 2021

When asked about preparing to face Crosby, Roethlisberger said he hasn’t been surprised by his success.

“He’s from the MAC,” Roethlisberger said. “That’s where the best football players come from. He’s a stud.”

Crosby reciprocated the respect later Wednesday afternoon.

“He’s a legend from the MAC. I definitely agree with him,” Crosby said of the former Miami of Ohio star. “The best players come from the MAC, so shout out to him. We’re looking forward to this week. He’s a great player and another obstacle in our way. So we’re going to prepare for him and be ready.”

Transactions

The Raiders made a couple rumored roster moves official on Wednesday, announcing the signings of defensive tackle Damion Square and guard Jordan Simmons.

Simmons spent 2017 on the Raiders’ practice squad as an undrafted rookie before playing in 20 games with the Seahawks over the last three seasons, including nine starts.

Square also entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2013 and has spent time with the Eagles, Chiefs and Chargers.

He played five snaps in the Bears’ loss to the Rams on Sunday and has appeared in 92 games in his career.

“We just signed him and the dude already fits right in,” said Crosby, speaking of the chemistry the defense is building. “We just met him today. He fits right in the group.”

Guard Denzelle Good and defensive tackle Gerald McCoy were placed on injured reserve to make room on the roster.

The Raiders also added veteran safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to the practice squad, releasing Madre Harper to clear space.

Clinton-Dix is a former first-round pick of the Packers He has 16 career interceptions, four forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries in 96 career games, including 90 starts.

The 28-year-old former Alabama star didn’t play last season and was released by the 49ers after training camp last month.

Taking shots

According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the Raiders filed a complaint with the league alleging dirty hits on wide receiver Hunter Renfrow.

At least one of the hits drew a penalty flag, but quarterback Derek Carr said at least one other hit should have been called.

“They had a couple shots on him,” he said. “Teams get this thought in their mind about everybody. With a guy his size and in the slot, they thought maybe they could just rough him up. I don’t know what their plan was, but I can assume they probably thought they could get in his head.”

Renfrow insists it didn’t work.

“I didn’t particularly notice anything different than any other game,” he said. “You just get so caught up in the game and winning and playing your best that you don’t even notice whatever people are trying to do. You just get so focused on the job that you just play.”

Injury report

The Raiders listed 17 players on their first official injury report of the week, though the participation status was just an estimate because the team conducted a walkthrough instead of a full practice.

Richie Incognito remains out with a calf injury that has kept him off the field nearly a month. Josh Jacobs continues to deal with a toe injury and now has concerns about an ankle that kept him out of practice.

He has said he will miss several practices this year to manage wear and tear on his body, so Friday will be the most telling practice report each week for the star running back.

Linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski was out with a concussion and backup quarterback Marcus Mariota missed the session with a quad injury. Safety Roderic Teamer remains out with an ankle injury after missing the opener.

Yannick Ngakoue (hamstring), Denzel Perryman (hip) and Alec Ingold (fibula) were all limited.

Adam Hill Las Vegas Review-Journal