Raiders grappling with injury bug on top of losses

HENDERSON, Nev. -- Less ominous than an agitated and wheelchair-bound Hector Salamanca from "Breaking Bad."

More playful than Pee-Wee Herman doing tricks on his souped-up bike.

The tinny ding-ding of an injured Christian Wilkins hitting the bell on his scooter as he barreled down a hallway to the Las Vegas Raiders locker room earlier this season did more than warn teammates of his impending arrival.

It provided an ironic snapshot of the Raiders' serious and lighthearted-yet-perpetually injured roster.

Indeed, given the rash of injuries to hit the Raiders this season, the busiest people in the building of late may very well be Chris Cortez, the team's head athletic trainer, and whomever is in charge of ordering walking boots.

"This is crazy," said Raiders linebacker Divine Deablo. "I've never seen this amount of injuries on any team I've been on."

Deablo himself missed three games earlier this season with an assortment of maladies, from a concussion to a hip and an oblique.

"That's terrible, honestly," added receiver Jakobi Meyers, referring to the two games he missed himself with an ankle injury.

"It's boring. It sucks because you feel like you could help, you know what I mean? Injuries, I mean it is the worst part of football. But we know what we signed up for."

And this from running back Ameer Abdullah, who will likely benefit from injuries to Alexander Mattison (ankle) and Zamir White (quad) and start Sunday at Allegiant Stadium against the Denver Broncos: "That's the league, man. That's the league."

And then some.

Consider: the defense with which the Raiders finished Sunday's loss at the Miami Dolphins was missing six projected starters from the beginning of the season.

From defensive end Malcolm Koonce, who suffered a torn ACL in his right knee in a non-contact practice injury three days before the season opener, to Wilkins, who broke his left foot in a Week 5 loss at the Broncos, to safety Marcus Epps, lost to a torn ACL in a Week 3 defeat to the Carolina Panthers, to three cornerbacks in Nate Hobbs (ankle in Week 9's loss at the Cincinnati Bengals) and Jakorian Bennett (shoulder) and Jack Jones (back), both of whom were injured at Miami.

Even three-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby missed a game this season for the first time in his six-season career, with a left high ankle sprain suffered on the second-to-last play of a Week 2 win at the Baltimore Ravens. And fellow defensive end Tyree Wilson missed a game with a knee injury.

The injury bug has also taken a bite on the offensive side of the ball. Or did you miss the offensive line already employing six different starting combinations in 10 games?

At Cincinnati, the Raiders had to use eight different O-linemen.

Gardner Minshew, starting at quarterback in part because Aidan O'Connell is on injured reserve with a broken thumb on his right (passing) hand, said it is "huge" for him as the QB to impart a message of belief and continuity no matter who is on the field.

"You're kind of the straw that stirs the drink, so you've got to make sure everybody's understanding," he said.

"It's definitely a challenge, man ... if you're a guy that's been in there, you try to help the guys as they come in and plug in. But I mean, I think it's our work during the week that's got to come through, the preparation. And I think you're seeing the commitment of guys that, one week may not be getting any reps, the next week are having to start and play. I think that's very important. I think they've been doing a good job, for the most part, of just staying plugged in and ready to go."

Sure, it would be easy to lay at least some of the blame for the Raiders' six-game losing streak -- their longest in-season losing skid in 10 years -- on the injuries, and backups to backups having to play significant snaps, right?

But as Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said, it's all "fluid" when it comes to who plays, due to injury.

"Everybody we suit up, man, better be ready to play," Pierce said. "That's what seems to happen with us."

Wednesday, the Raiders had eight players sit out practice due to injury.

Ding ding, indeed.

Asked if he ever, behind closed doors, threw his hands up and asked for a break from the injuries, Pierce smiled.

"This isn't a break season for me," he said. "So, it's one of the ones you've got to just swallow, you've got to take it. And, obviously, we'll look back for all the reasons, right? There's been some non-contact injuries. There's been guys getting rolled up. Think about the Cincinnati Bengals game -- you get six guys with ankle injuries. that's kind of unheard of.

"Just been having some bad breaks. But nobody feels sorry for us. Nobody feels sorry for me. You've got to roll out there with 11 players, and that's what we're going to do come Sunday."

Cue Wilkins' bell.