Khalil Mack will not play in the Raiders' preseason game Saturday against the Rams as his contract holdout continues.
The edge rusher missed all of the Raiders' training camp and will be a no-show for the team's second preseason game. Sources continue to tell Insider Scott Bair the sides are not close to an agreement, although Oakland does not plan on trading the 2016 NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
The Raiders can fine Mack a game check with every preseason game that he misses, as ESPN recently pointed out. That doesn't mean that they will do so, however. Typically, once team and player come to an agreement, those fines go away.
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The Raiders dealt with a similar situation during Donald Penn's holdout from training camp and preseason games last season. The offensive lineman did not report to the team until late August, but the Raiders never made Penn pay the accumulated fines.
It's clear Raiders head coach Jon Gruden wants Mack on the team for the 2018 season.
“It has obviously, for me, been disappointing,” Gruden said Wednesday. “You want to have your best player here. This guy is really a great guy, too. I’m disappointed we don’t have him here.
“We’re going to try to get him here as soon as we can. In the time being, you got to move on. You’ve got to get up and go to work. That’s one thing I’m very proud of what we’ve done here.”
NFL
Mack currently is under contract, set to make $13,846 million on a fifth-year team option of his rookie contract applicable only to first-round draft picks.