Marques

Tuiasosopo

This could mean Joey Harrington is headed to Carolina. Tuiasosopo, 28, is expected to challenge 2006 second-round pick Kellen Clemens to back up Chad Pennington. Look for Clemens to win that competition.

Tui reportedly spent a lot of time with QBs coach John DeFilippo, and while Lane Kiffin wouldn’t comment, he said information could come later in the day. Tuiasosopo’s first stint with the Raiders was unimpressive, but the Contra Costa Times points out that his skill set fits the current scheme much better than Norv Turner’s. He’d push Andrew Walter for the No. 2 job.

Tuiasosopo, 29, has appeared in 11 career games with two starts. His career completion rate is 54.5 and his yards-per-attempt is a dreadful 4.5. Tui will compete with Andrew Walter to back up JaMarcus Russell in 2008.

Ronald Curry starts at flanker. Walker still hasn’t been placed on IR for reasons unknown. Darren McFadden, Derrick Burgess, and JaMarcus Russell are all active.

That’s quite a change from Sunday, when coach Norv Turner said QB Marques Tuiasosopo would remain the starter. If Oakland benches Tuiasosopo in favor of QB Andrew Walter now they can basically guarantee that he’ll leave as a free agent this offseason.

They may be waiting to see how the situations surrounding David Carr and Trent Green shake out. Joey Harrington has also been linked as a possibility.

That looks likely unless they bench QB Kerry Collins, and Tuiasosopo sounds ready for free agency. “I think, when given the opportunity, I’ve proven that I can play at a high level and help teams win,’' Tuiasosopo said.

Kerry Collins will serve as the backup.

Oakland heads to New York this week to face the Jets. The Raiders then face the Browns and Broncos, which is a fine schedule for a QB. Tuiasosopo is worth grabbing as a QB2 in fantasy leagues if you need help. He’s athletic, but is really an unknown in his fourth season. He becomes a free agent after the season if he doesn’t take 30% of Oakland’s snaps, which is unlikely with only four games left.

There’s no going back now. Kerry Collins will move on after the season and so will Tuiasosopo if he plays poorly.