David

Amerson

Amerson can earn another $3.75 million through incentives. This, of course, is not the destination the Raiders would have picked. Amerson, 26, stays in the AFC West with Kansas City, which needs a starting right cornerback across from LCB Marcus Peters with Kendall Fuller in the slot. Amerson was a 2015 revelation in Oakland after a trade from Washington, then fizzled out immediately after signing a 2016 five-year, $34 million deal. On a one-year prove-it contract with the Chiefs, Amerson will have full motivation in 2018.

The move is not a surprise, but it was a disappointing one after the Raiders gave Amerson a five-year, $34 million deal before the 2016 season. Amerson went right in the tank, only starting 21 games over the next two years and getting progressively worse whenever he suited up. As T.J. Carrie is a free agent, the Raiders are left with Sean Smith, Gareon Conley, and Dexter McDonald atop their cornerback depth chart. They need to try to keep Carrie after a breakout year at slot corner.

The deal includes $18 million guaranteed. It’s a huge raise for a player who was owed just $880,000 in the final year of his contract. A big, physical press corner, Amerson was an immediate starter for Oakland after getting waived from Washington last year, grading as PFF’s No. 9 overall cover corner. Sean Smith will open the season opposite Amerson in a vastly improved Raiders secondary. First-round pick Karl Joseph and 2015 NFL interceptions leader Reggie Nelson will man the safety positions.

We haven’t had a blurb on Amerson since he was waived by the Redskins last September. The Raiders claimed him and immediately plugged him in as the starter Week 4. A second-round bust in D.C., Amerson’s career path took a 180-degree turn. From Week 4 on, Amerson was PFF’s No. 9 overall cover corner, allowing a 55-percent catch rate and 2:4 TD:INT ratio with 13 pass breakups. With Smith and Amerson, the Raiders might finally have a respectable corner duo.

He’s in the league’s protocol and can be considered questionable for Week 3 at the Titans. The Raiders have allowed 69 points through two games, but Amerson has arguably been their best cover corner with veteran Sean Smith getting roasted by both the Saints and Falcons. We’ll update Amerson later this week.

Amerson was able to gain clearance over the weekend. Inactive for the Raiders are OT Austin Howard, QB Connor Cook, CB Dexter McDonald, CB Antonio Hamilton, OT Matt McCants, and TE Mychal Rivera.

Amerson remains in the league’s concussion protocol but Del Rio thinks he’ll be “fine” by Sunday. With Sean Smith struggling, the Raiders need Amerson healthy and playing well. For what it’s worth, Amerson was a limited participant at Wednesday’s practice.

Amerson returned to a full practice on Friday. He should be able to pass the league’s concussion protocol before Sunday’s meeting with Tennessee. The Raiders need some stability in their secondary after getting torched through the air against Matt Ryan last week and Drew Brees the week before.

It’s a bullet dodged for the Raiders, who have issues to spare at cornerback. A Sunday shootout is brewing between the Raiders and Titans.

Amerson sprained his foot in last week’s win over the Chiefs and is also dealing with a shoulder injury. With Gareon Conley (shin) already on the shelf, losing Amerson would be a big blow to an already weak Raiders’ secondary. Sean Smith would fill in if Amerson misses Week 8 against the Bills.