INSIDE SLANT

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There is a possibility undrafted free agent Matt McGloin could be the third starting quarterback for the Oakland Raiders this season.

Terrelle Pryor, who started eight games, watched practice while nursing a right knee strain Wednesday as McGloin got all the work with the first team.

The other start was by Matt Flynn, acquired from Seattle in an offseason trade that sent two draft picks to the Seahawks -- a fifth-rounder in 2014 and a conditional choice in 2015 that certainly has been minimized since Flynn was cut by the Raiders and Buffalo Bills before being signed this week by the Green Bay Packers.

That's hardly the way Flynn or the Raiders expected things to be when he was supposed to open the season as a starter, but gave way to Pryor in a similar fashion to how he yielded to Russell Wilson last season in Seattle.

Flynn became expendable in Oakland after an abysmal start against Washington while Pryor was out with a concussion.

With Pryor at something less than 100 percent in terms of mobility, he was 11 of 25 for 122 yards for a touchdown and an interception Terrell Thomas returned 65 yards to set up a go-ahead score for the New York Giants in a 24-21 loss.

"I'll evaluate it again tomorrow and see how he's feeling and if he's healthy enough to play, he'll play, but if not, we'll go with Matt McGloin," coach Dennis Allen said.

Even being a snap away is a remarkable ascent for McGloin, who was undrafted yet beat out fourth-round draft pick Tyler Wilson of Arkansas, who was waived at the final cutdown and is now on the Raiders' practice squad.

Allen said McGloin has continued to get better, although his only play was an 8-for-15, 84-yard performance in a 49-20 loss to Philadelphia after Pryor twisted his right knee.

"I think he's got a better grasp of what we're doing offensively. He's continued to improve his decision-making," Allen said. "He's continued to improve his accuracy and those are things that really, you have to have as a quarterback in being able to throw the football. I think he's continued to improve as he's gotten a better feel for what we're doing offensively."

At 6-foot-1, 210 pounds, McGloin cuts an entirely different figure than the strapping Pryor (6-4, 233).

If he were to start, the Raiders would operate in a manner more in line with what they were thinking in the offseason. At that time, Flynn was brought in as the presumptive starter, and the thought was the Raiders would utilize a game-manager at quarterback that would avoid turnovers with the team playing to its strength on defense and special teams.

Flynn, however, played progressively worse as preseason went on and Pryor's playmaking ability was irresistible.

McGloin's presence would eliminate the read option series that has become part of the Raiders offense, with offensive coordinator Greg Olson putting in short passing plays that McGloin can throw well _ perhaps better than Pryor.

McGloin didn't want to go into detail about the changes in offense if he were to start.

"I really don't want to go into specifics," McGloin said. "We're obviously two different quarterbacks. Terrelle can do a lot of great things. I obviously don't have the running ability that he has, but I bring some good things to the table. I was proud of the way our offense handled e being in there for the first time."

The Raiders gave McGloin a vote of confidence of sorts after Flynn played poorly in a 24-14 loss to Washington, elevating him to backup quarterback behind Pryor. Flynn, although guaranteed $6.5 million, was released.

"I obviously showed them enough to prove that I'm capable of playing at the level and being ready to play if called upon," McGloin said. "That right there makes me want to work harder and prepare and be ready when and if called upon. It was great to see how they feel about me and it makes me work harder. "

Considering a hustling overachiever in high school and college, McGloin said he's simply competitive by nature more than out to prove people wrong.

"I don't want to sound arrogant or anything, but it's just a mindset that quarterbacks need to have," McGloin said. "You have to believe in yourself and believe that your capable of playing at this level. A lot of people consider it a chip, but I don't think of it that way. It's something you need. I love playing the game and I love the competition. It's something I don't want to lose."

SERIES HISTORY: 8th regular-season meeting, Texans lead series, 5-2. Raiders won last meeting 25-20 on Oct. 9, 2011. Jason Campbell passed for 190 yards and two touchdowns, and defensive end Lamarr Houston and safety Michael Huff each had interceptions. Huff's came at the end of the game to seal the victory with only 10 men on the field. The game was played two days after the death of Raiders owner Al Davis.

NOTES, QUOTES

-- Pryor conceded that as his right knee became more sore last week, he kept it to himself rather than inform the training staff or the coaching staff.

"It was the competitive nature in myself, just thinking, 'Hey, I can go out, I've just got to do this. I can go sit in the pocket,' " Pryor said. "It fired back at me. I didn't want to let my teammates down. I wanted to go out there with those guys. It's a lesson learned."

Considering the beating quarterbacks who run can take, Pryor will need to develop his skills to the point where he can lead his team in ways other than scrambles and read option runs.

"Everybody in the NFL this time of year has issues with injuries," Allen said. "You battle through things, but sometimes you can't. Sometimes the injury is of a nature where you can't battle through it."

-- Fullback Marcel Reece, signed to a four-year contract extension worth a reported $14.4 million with half of that guaranteed, continued to be a forgotten man in the Raiders offense.

He caught three passes for 45 yards against the Giants, including a screen pass for 16 yards, and had no runs from scrimmage.

According to the game book, Reece played only 17 of 57 snaps on offense.

In 2012, Reece had 111 touches for 767 yards (59 carries for 271 yards and 52 receptions for 496 yards). Through nine games this season, Reece has 28 touches for 195 yards (13 carries for 57 yards, 15 receptions for 138 yards).

Allen said the plan was to give Reece some runs from scrimmage with Darren McFadden injured against New York, but when Rashad Jennings got a hot hand (18 rushes for 88 yards) they kept feeding Jennings.

Reece said he continues to watch film with offensive coordinator Greg Olson, that he trusts the coaching staff. He hasn't uttered a peep of complaint.

Not that he wouldn't like to get the ball now and then.

"Do I want the ball? Yes, I want the ball," Reece said. "Do I want it often? Yes, I want it often. I want the ball every time I step on the field. It's just reality that the game doesn't always go that way."

-- The Raiders could get significantly more healthy on the offensive line in the coming weeks with the return of tackles Tony Pashos and Jared Veldheer.

Pashos was grading out as the Raiders top lineman at right tackle despite being signed the week of the season opener, but he has missed the last four games with a hip injury. There's an outside chance Pashos could start against Houston but with continued progress would likely start the following week when the Raiders host Tennessee.

Pashos became the right side starter when Khalif Barnes was moved to left tackle following injuries to rookie Menelik Watson and Veldheer.

"You want me to quantify the unquantifiable? I don't know," Pashos said about the possibility of playing against Houston. "I just did the walkthrough and some individual stuff. But I'm happy to be out there and not in the training room."

Veldheer practiced for the first time since August following surgery for a torn triceps. There is a 21-day window where he can practice, with the Raiders able to put him on the 53-man roster at any time. At the end of that 21 days, Veldheer must either be on the roster or on injured reserve.

"He mostly went through individual stuff today and we'll evaluate him as he goes through the week and we'll see when he' ready to play," Allen said. "Hopefully it will be soon."

BY THE NUMBERS: 32 -- The number of yards separating running back Darren McFadden (352 yards rushing) from second-string running back Rashad Jennings (330).

QUOTE TO NOTE: "We've got to continue to fight to get ourselves out of this hole. I know we've got a lot of character. Those guys in that locker room are going to keep fighting, keep working. They're the type of guys you want in the locker room," _ Raiders coach Dennis Allen

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
PLAYER NOTES

-- DL Brian Sanford, waived before the Giants game to bring aboard offensive line depth, was re-signed to the 53-man roster.

-- OL James Cornell promoted to the practice squad for the Giants game, was waived and is back on the practice squad.

-- TE Mychal Rivera had two receptions against the Giants and has two or fewer catches in six of the Raiders' nine games.

-- FS Usama Young played 37 snaps with a sack against the Giants and a pass defensed after getting just two snaps against Phialdelphia.

-- G Lamarr Mady played eight snaps while subbing for struggling starter Lucas Nix against New York.

INJURY IMPACT

-- RT Tony Pashos returned to practice after missing four games with a hip injury and with sufficient progress could be in line to play against Houston.

-- SS Tyvon Branch missed practice with an ankle injury, hasn't played since Week 2, and is unlikely to face Houston.

-- RB Darren McFadden is working with trainers to rehab a hamstring strain and his status is uncertain against Houston.

-- CB DJ Hayden is working with trainers to rehab a groin strain and his status is uncertain against Houston.

-- PK Sebastian Janikowski is nursing a rib injury and didn't practice Wednesday but is expected to face Houston.

GAME PLAN: If Terrelle Pryor is unable to play, the story line will be the matchup between two undrafted quarterbacks -- Case Keenum, signed by the Texans as a rookie free agent out of Houston last year, and Matt McGloin, signed as a rookie free agent out of Penn State this year.

But for either of them to do anything worth remembering -- in a positive way -- they will need blocking.

So this game will be played in the trenches, where the Raiders' ever-shuffling offensive line must block the Texans' terror, defensive end J. J. Watt, and Houston must hold off an Oakland front seven that has shown it can pressure quarterbacks, although not consistently.

Both teams no longer feature running backs formerly rated as stars -- Houston's Arian Foster, who went on injured reserve this week, and Oakland's Darren McFadden who has been hurt all year and it was obvious when he played ineffectively.

So, good luck to those young quarterbacks.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH: Raiders RT Menelik Watson or Tony Pashos vs. Texans LDE J.J. Watt -- Watson had his first NFL start against the Giants and other than a first-quarter false start, was penalty free. His effort was even in the estimation of the coaching staff, but considering his lack of experience -- Watson has had probably less than a dozen practices as an active player -- his upside is huge. Pashos was grading out as the Raiders' top lineman but is just getting back to practice. Watt, one of the NFL's dominant defensive linemen, had two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries against Arizona and has a sack in each of his last four games.

--Texans P Shane Lechler vs. Raiders P Marquette King -- Field position is huge to a Raiders team that is struggling to score, and few people are better at swinging it in the direction of his team than Lechler, who had a 58.7 average in his last game and is among the NFL leaders in punting. He'll be looking to perform well against the team that drafted him but made no effort in free agency to bring him back. King showed some mettle last week after getting his first punt blocked and returned for a touchdown. He ended up averaging 50.7 yards per punt and placed three balls inside the 20-yard line.

Sports & RecreationAmerican FootballTerrelle PryorOakland RaidersMatt McGloin
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