Defensive tackle Richard Seymour is back on the practice field, but it doesn’t sound like he’ll be back with the Raiders for long.
Seymour missed the previous five games with a hamstring injury, and has three games left on his contract with the Raiders.
“I would love to retire a Raider but I have earned the right to be a free agent,” Seymour said, via Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle. “I really love wearing this uniform. We’ll see what happens.”
That sounds well short of “Please, please keep me here,” in terms of his hopes for a new deal there.
The 33-year-old has played well since Al Davis traded a first-round pick for him in 2009, but he’s the kind of old part the Raiders under new general manager Reggie McKenzie aren’t expected to retain.
They’ve already gotten rid of nearly half last year’s Week 17 roster (26 players), and waived cornerback Ron Bartell earlier this week.
“It’s a business,” Seymour said. “Everybody is being evaluated from the top to the bottom. We’re all in this together, and we have to put our best foot forward. This is a great week to get back on track.”
Or to start packing for a move that appears inevitable.