ALAMEDA – Washington quickly abandoned ship on cornerback Dave Amerson. The football team drafted the defensive back in the second-round of the 2013 draft, a position that generally indicates a player is in the team’s long-term plans and will be given time to reach his true potential.
Washington waived Amerson just two-plus seasons into his career, after a disappointing 2014 campaign where he played a lot but didn’t play well.
The Raiders claimed him on Tuesday and brought him to practice on Wednesday afternoon. He spent time before the session sifting through his playbook, trying to absorb the Raiders’ new scheme.
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“I felt like I should get picked up (off waivers), and I’m glad that the Raiders did,” Amerson said. “I’m looking forward to contributing to this team and helping us win. Right now, I’m just trying to learn the playbook as fast as I can so I can get out there and be on the same page with everybody.”
The Raiders could use depth in their secondary. They have TJ Carrie and DJ Hayden starting, with Neiko Thorpe as the No. 3 man in sub packages. Keith McGill has fallen out of the rotation, and rookie Dexter McDonald has been inactive his first two games.
Amerson has all the raw materials required of a good cornerback. The N.C. State alum stands 6-foot-3, 194 pounds and ran a 4.44-second 40-yard dash at the NFL combine. The Raiders hope to mold him into a serviceable cornerback who uses his physical tools well.
“He is athletic,” Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio said. “He’s got size, speed and athleticism that we covet. [We’ll] give him an opportunity to compete here. He’s got some starts in the league, so he has some experience. He’s still a young player. He has a chance to develop, so we’ll let him come in here and compete and determine a role through competition.”