Jon Gruden has been vague about the injury that’s keeping Obi Melifonwu off the field, but it doesn’t take a mentalist to sense his tone on the Raiders 2017 second-round pick. If his patience isn’t wearing thin, Gruden seems to be doing a great job of communicating otherwise.
The Athletic’s Vic Tafur found Gruden after the game on Friday night and asked the head coach about Melifonwu. “[Gruden] walked right by me in the locker room,” Tafur said Friday on his State of the Nation podcast. “So I said ‘Jon, what’s the update on Obi?’ and he looked at me and laughed. Which is not a good sign for Obi.”
Saw Gruden after press conference and asked about Obi Melifonwu's injury status: "He is still being evaluated. We have a team of evaluators … and they are going to give us all the evaluations." Gruden did not keep a straight face.
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 11, 2018
Gruden has been calling Melifonwu’s injury a “lower body flare-up” and it’s now been a week that the injury has kept Melifonwu out of practice.
As of now, the Raiders depth chart lists Melifonwu as the team’s third-string safety behind Karl Joseph and Erik Harris. At free safety are Marcus Gilchrist and Reggie Nelson, who are both expected to make the final roster. Considering how much Gruden loves Harris (Nelson, Gilchrist, and Nelson are all expected to make the team), Melifonwu is clearly facing an uphill battle to make the roster.
Melifonwu missed most of his rookie season to injury and given his inability to stay healthy in his second year, it’s safe to wonder how much he’ll be available even if he does make the team.
twitter: @raidersbeat
Wasted pick !
Move over Obi, your weak. There are people who actually desire to play in the NFL and make a name for themselves. This game is too big for you to even practice well.
It would be stupid to keep Nelson over obi. Nelson ain’t got nothin left, he’s just getting by on knowledge, with obi at least there’s a chance for him to become a really good player. Have some **** patience with the kid, injuries happen. Justwinbaby!
Time to move on, all we need is another glass chandelier wasting time and roster space