The one thing the Oakland Raiders cannot afford is injuries. Currently at risk of starting the season 0-4 with their coach's job on the line, the team needs everyone healthy and contributing as they prepare to face off against the Miami Dolphins in London. However, that has not been the case to start the season and things are only getting worse and two of their top performers are preparing to miss significant time.
Head coach Dennis Allen confirmed on Wednesday that both Tyvon Branch and Rod Streater will miss several weeks as both players need foot surgery following fractures suffered during last week's loss to the New England Patriots. There is no timeable for a return for either player, injured reserve could be in their futures.
"There's no timeline for either one of those guys," Allen said, via CSNBayArea.com. "Both of them are going to need surgery. We'll just monitor their situations individually and see what the recovery time is."
This is a big blow for the Raiders. Adam Caplan of ESPN expects Branch to miss the remainder of the year while Streater's return is a little less certain. Not having Branch is something the Raiders are used to. He has played just five games over the past two years after fracturing his fibula last year. Missing Streater is another blow to the already struggling offense.
While no one on the wide receivers corps was putting up impressive numbers, Streater was needed. Without him, the already thin group must step up and start making an impact for quarterback Derek Carr. The running backs certainly are not doing that as Maurice Jones-Drew and Darren McFadden continue to struggle in the offense. Now, players like Andre Holmes and the newly signed Vincent Brown must prepare for more playing time. Denarius Moore will now need to step up to his potential as he immediately becomes on the top receivers on the team. Tight end Mychal Rivera also falls into that category.
The Raiders cannot afford any more injuries. The team gets Jones-Drew back into the mix which will certainly help. Carr cannot get hurt, especially this week as Matt Schaub did not even make the trip to London with Oakland. According to a report by CSN Bay Area the one-time Oakland starter is back in the United States instead of at Wembley Stadium for the game. Not much has been heard from Schaub since he got replaced by Carr, but Matt McGloin now becomes the team's backup for now and likely the future.
