Linebacker NaVorro Bowman signed with the Raiders on Monday, which didn’t give him much time to get the defense down before Thursday night’s game against the Chiefs.
It appears that it was enough time to get a handle on enough of the defense for him to get on the field. Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack said Bowman “picked it up quick” and coach Jack Del Rio suggested that Bowman will have a role as a result.
“He’s looked good,” Del Rio said, via the San Francisco Chronicle. “He’s a veteran. He understands ball. We’ve not tried to install the entire playbook, but specific game-plan things. Even though it’s a short week, we feel good that he’ll play. ... He’s a very instinctive player and he’s been there before. He understands what it looks like to line up against a good football team and help us win.”
The Raiders listed three linebackers -- Cory James, Marquel Lee and Nicholas Morrow -- as questionable for the game against Kansas City, so there’s a possible need for Bowman’s services beyond the one the Raiders identified when he became a free agent last week.