ALAMEDA – Raiders receiver J.J. Nelson started training camp hot, but hasn't been available much lately. He sprained an ankle in the second preseason game at Arizona, but recovered in time to play eight snaps Monday night against Denver.
Nelson suffered a setback in that game, and is back in a walking boot while moving around the Raiders training complex.
The Raiders formally ruled Nelson out of Sunday's game against Kansas City, creating a window for Alameda native Keelan Doss to make his regular-season Raiders debut.
The Raiders certainly need more than four receivers, and he would be the fifth behind Tyrell Williams, Ryan Grant, Hunter Renfrow and Dwayne Harris.
Doss remains a work in progress offensively, and hasn't been given the opportunity to play much on special teams. That leaves little room to make regular contributions.
Raiders fans loved Doss this preseason, while watching his star turn on "Hard Knocks," and he remains popular entering his first opportunity to play a regular-season game.
Head coach Jon Gruden is getting tired of talking about him so much, considering Doss comes up in almost every press conference.
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"He's a work in progress in all areas," Gruden said. "I know he's a hot topic around here."
The Raiders had to pay a $745,000 guaranteed to get him off Jacksonville's practice squad, so they definitely appreciate his talent after a strong summer with the Silver and Black. He does have to continue developing in the offense, but it's a real benefit to add someone who can hit the ground running.
"You're lucky when you can bring someone back that's been in your system," offensive coordinator Greg Olson said. "As you all saw in "Hard Knocks," he's someone that we had expectations of and unfortunately weren't able to keep him on our active roster. But we did want to sign him on our practice squad and he was able to, when he initially went to Jacksonville, I think they offered a little bit better package. So it's understandable that he left for maybe a better opportunity. The chance to bring him back with the loss of [Antonio Brown], I think he jumped at the chance. We made him an offer again. We were happy with his development and we were happy to get him back."
Gruden also said that defensive tackle Corey Liuget was "very questionable" to play Sunday. He's dealing with a knee issue, but also hasn't had much work with the club. The Raiders want to get him involved in padded practices before trotting him out in a game, and they're rare at this point. The club didn't conduct one on a short week prepping to play the Chiefs.
Also, the Raiders signed versatile defensive back Juston Burris, with safety Johnathan Abram formally placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.
INJURY REPORT
RAIDERS
Out
RG Gabe Jackson (knee)
WR J.J. Nelson (ankle)
Questionable
CB Gareon Conley (neck)
DT Corey Liuget (knee)
CHIEFS
Out
WR Tyreek Hill (shoulder)
Questionable
OT Eric Fisher (groin)
