The Oakland Raiders are 1-1 in the preseason so far through two weeks, but head coach Dennis Allen sees plenty of room for improvement and he should get that as wideout Jacoby Ford and defensive lineman Vance Walker returned to practice after dealing with injuries.
According to the Mercury News, Ford returned to practice as the team moves into "regular season" mode, as the report says there are just three practices left before training camp ends. Ford is being looked at as a number two receiver this season and the team needs him healthy to get Matt Flynn into a rhythm as he is starting for the first time in the league after being traded from the Seattle Seahawks.
The Raiders also got back DJ Hayden after he was finally cleared for contact after surgery this offseason and now the secondary looked better with Tracy Porter, Mike Jenkins as well as Charles Woodson and Tyvon Branch. The team is setting up for its third game against the Chicago Bears in Week 3 and that game is usually considered the most important for teams heading into the season, as they use it as a test for what will be going down later in the year when the season actually starts.
The Raiders made a number of moves in the offseason to get better and now the unit of Denarius Moore, Rod Streater and Brice Butler along with ford and Joshua Cribbs must step up for Flynn. The offense is expected to be more balanced this season with Darren McFadden in a new running scheme and for things to work out, Flynn needs some solid targets. Last season's top receiver in Brandon Myers is gone to the Giants and now Nick Kasa and Mychal Rivera must step up as rookies.
