Raiders Eager to Get Incognito Back in the Lineup

When the Raiders take on the Vikings in Minnesota this Sunday, they’ll have Richie Incognito back at left guard.

The longtime NFL veteran was suspended for the first two games of the season, but has returned to practice this week and is expected to start at left guard, where Jordan Devey and Jonathan Cooper were filling in.

Incognito has had a troubled history, both on and off the field in a pro career that dates to 2006. He was out of the league all of 2018, and was suspended for the first two games of 2019 for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy, connected to an arrest in Arizona in April and his subsequent guilty plea to disorderly conduct.

The Raiders were criticized after signing Incognito as a free agent this offseason, but general manager Mike Mayock said the team had "done a lot of homework on him" and believes he will not be a distraction this season.

Now, the Raiders are eager to get back Incognito, who has been selected to the Pro Bowl four times.

Soon, too, the Raiders expect that starting right guard Gabe Jackson will be back in the lineup soon after he sustained an injury in training camp.

"That’s a big plus for us," head coach Jon Gruden told reporters Monday, of Incognito’s return. "Gabe Jackson, by the way, is getting better every single day. I don’t think he’ll play this week, but he’s getting closer and closer and closer to returning, so to have Richie back gives us a jolt, and hopefully sooner than later, we’ll get Gabe back as well."