Read More: Tyvon Branch (SS – OAK), Chimdi Chekwa (CB – OAK), Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders selected cornerback Chimdi Chekwa in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft, only one round after selecting cornerback Demarcus Van Dyke.

So far, because of injuries, the Raiders have not been able to see much of Chekwa on the field. However, despite that, coach Hue Jackson may already have a plan for Chekwa. Reports have come out that Chekwa has been splitting time in practice between cornerback and safety.

However, unlike safety’s Tyvon Branch and Michael Huff, who have also been splitting time between safety and cornerback, Chekwa could be moved to safety permanently.

For Huff and Branch, the practice at both positions is likely because the Raiders will be trying out a number of options as their nickel corner. Rookie Demarcus Van Dyke has shown that he is not ready to be the Raiders full time nickelback, so Jackson and his coaching staff are exploring other options.

For Chekwa, the move appears to have more to do with where the Raiders think he will fit best. Sure, there are injury issues at the safety position with Hiram Eugene and Mike Mitchell, but it wouldn’t make sense to move a player from one unit in need of help (cornerbacks) to another in need of help (safety) unless there were long term goals in mind.

It is highly unlikely that Chekwa will see much playing time his rookie season regardless of which position the Raiders decide to place him at. Hopefully, the move is a sign that Chekwa will one day be able to excel at the safety position, as opposed to a sign that the Raiders have already given up hope on him as a cornerback.

Broncos quarterback Adam Weber stretches during practice Wednesday. (John Leyba, The Denver Post )

Sure, the Broncos have a game Thursday night at Arizona.

For many players on the roster bubble, how they play against the Cardinals could determine if they make the final 53-man roster.

But for players whose starting jobs are safe, the focus already is on the Sept. 12 season opener against Oakland.

“Really our focus now is on the Raiders and getting to be our best by the time we play in Week 1,” quarterback Kyle Orton said.

“We’ll get a nice head start on Oakland, I’ve already been watching film on them, and you can get a head start on your first couple opponents. So I’ll check out some Oakland, check out some Cincinnati before you get into that week-to-week grind.”

Coach John Fox declined to say

how much his starters will play against Arizona, but it is unlikely that the first unit plays much, if at all.

If Orton sits, Brady Quinn likely would be the starter for at least a couple of series before yielding to Tim Tebow and possibly rookie Adam Weber, who has yet to play significant minutes in the preseason.

Quinn did not play in last week’s preseason game against Seattle.

“I’m not expecting anything, really,” Quinn said. “It’ll be nice just to get out there again and shake off some of the rust after not playing for a couple of weeks.”

Footnotes: Defensive end Elvis Dumervil was held out of practice today to rest a groin injury suffered in practice Tuesday. Other players who were held out include Chris Kuper (toe), linebacker D.J. Williams (elbow), defensive tackle Marcus Thomas (pectoral) and wide receiver Jamel Hamler (back). Defensive tackle Kevin Vickerson returned to the field today for the first time this week after being held out earlier with a left ankle injury.

Lindsay H. Jones: 303-954-1262 or ljones@denverpost.com

Taiwan Jones spent all training camp trying to impress the Oakland Raiders with his speed. Now they’re trying to get the rookie running back to slow down.

Even he admits that might be a pretty tough challenge.

“My biggest problem is when I hear ‘Hike!’ I just want to go,” Jones said Tuesday. “A lot of times you have to be more patient and let the blocks develop. I just have to remind myself to slow down.”

After missing a large chunk of camp with a slight hamstring pull, Jones has a lot of ground to make up in a very short time.

He remains third on the Raiders’ depth chart behind Darren McFadden and Michael Bush and is one of six running backs on the team’s roster. At an even 6 feet, 195 pounds Jones is also the smallest member of the group — and that’s after gaining 20 pounds in the offseason.

Jones looked plenty quick in his debut last weekend against New Orleans when he ran for 81 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown, caught two passes and returned a kickoff.

“I’m not surprised, and I think he can do more,” Raiders coach Hue Jackson said. “I think he has a bright future ahead of him but again, that was one outing. He needs to do it consistently in order to be talked about as one of these really good players.”

Jones will get another shot to do that when the Raiders fly to Seattle for their final exhibition game Thursday.

McFadden, who missed a portion of camp with a fractured orbital bone, has not played at all this preseason and will likely be held out of the finale against the Seahawks. Bush is likely to start in McFadden’s place but will probably take only a handful of reps before giving way to the backups.

That means a welcome but increased workload for Jones, Oakland’s fourth-round draft pick who needs to keep pressing the pedal in order to make the Raiders’ 53-man roster.

To do that Jones also needs to slow down a bit — at least mentally. That was something he admittedly struggled to do against the Saints.

With 30 friends and family members in the stands, Jones almost became too excited and had to catch himself before settling in.

“The hardest thing was trying to slow myself down,” Jones said. “I was so anxious and excited that I was able to showcase my talent against another team that I was a little too fast sometimes. I just had to slow things down, take a deep breath and try to be patient.”

The combination of McFadden and Bush helped the Raiders finish with the NFL’s second-ranked running game in 2010, and Jackson is looking to build off that this year.

But both players have a history of injuries, too, which was one of the reasons Oakland drafted Jones in April.

Now it’s a matter of getting the speedy runner to maintain his quickness while slowing down everything else.

“God, can this guy run,” Jackson said. “He’s very nimble and he’s very smooth. For a guy that’s built like he is, he’s very physical. There’s a lot of velocity behind the man when he runs into a pile.”

Meanwhile the Raiders made several roster moves to reach the 80-player limit by Tuesday’s deadline.

Linebacker Travis Goethel and rookie offensive lineman Alan Pelc were placed on injured reserve. Additionally, fullback Bryson Kelly, wide receivers Damola Adeniji and Steve Goulet, offensive linemen Ben Lamaak and Lou Eliades, safety Josh Bullocks and defensive tackle Derrick Hill were all waived.

Goethel, who was expected to back up middle linebacker Rolando McClain, suffered a knee injury during training camp last week. The second-year player had also played on special teams.

Notes: CB Chris Johnson returned to practice and should be available to play in the Raiders’ season-opener. Johnson underwent a surgical procedure in camp, though neither he nor the team have disclosed what the surgery was for. … C/LG Stefen Wisniewski attended practice but only as a spectator. Jackson said Wisniewski was dinged up.’ … Jackson hinted that QB Terrelle Pryor may play against Seattle, though he wouldn’t say how much. If he does play, it will be Pryor’s only appearance in a game until after he serves his five-game NFL suspension.

Read More: Josh Bullocks (DB – OAK), Travis Goethel (LB – OAK), Lou Eliades (OT – OAK), Steve Goulet (WR – OAK), Derrick Hill (DT – OAK), Damola Adeniji (WR – OAK), Ben Lamaak (OL – OAK), Alan Pelc (G – OAK), Bryson Kelly (FB – OAK), Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Raiders cut their roster down by nine players Tuesday morning by waiving six, injury waiving one, and placing two players on the injured reserve. The moves were reported by Oakland Tribute beat writer Jerry McDonald, and are as follows:

Waived:
FB Bryson Kelly
OL Ben Lamaak
WR Damola Adeniji
WR Steve Goulet
S Josh Bullocks
DT Derrick Hill 

Injured / Waived:

OL Lou Eliades

Placed on Injured Reserve:

G Alan Pelc
LB Travis Goethel

Josh Bullocks was signed as a veteran two weeks ago as an apparent special teams contributor,  but apparently didn’t show enough in camp to warrant a roster spot. Wide receiver Steve Goulet, center Ben Lamaak, fullback Bryson Kelly, offensive lineman Lou Eliades, and defensive tackle Derek Hill were all signed by the Raiders as undrafted free agents this season. Damola Adeniji had spent some time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before signing with the Raiders.

For more on the Raiders, check out Silver & Black Pride.    

It’s looking as if rookie Stefen Wisniewski, anointed the starting center on draft day when he was the only one on the roster, will instead be the Raiders’ starting left guard.

While coach Hue Jackson wouldn’t come out and say it Monday in a conference call with local media, Wisniewski probably will be the replacement for free-agent departure Robert Gallery when Oakland opens the regular season Sept. 12 against the Denver Broncos.

“I wouldn’t say he’s all the way entrenched there, but I think he’s done some very good things,” Jackson said. “I think as we move closer to our opener, as we move closer to our game this week, we’ll have a pretty good idea where we’re going to play him at.”

The Raiders (0-3) close out the exhibition season Friday night in Seattle, with most starters likely playing very little if at all.

With the offensive line a bright spot in a 40-20 loss to New Orleans on Sunday night, it appears Wisniewski’s destiny is to begin his career at the same position his uncle (and position coach) Steve Wisniewski did as an eight-time Pro Bowler for the Raiders.

“It looks like that,” Stefen Wisniewski, a second-round draft pick out of Penn State, said Sunday night. “Certainly, things could change at any point, but it seems like that might be my permanent spot.”

For the past several practices, Wisniewski, who played center when camp opened, has played at left guard while incumbent Samson Satele, who was re-signed

Aug. 2, played center.

Jared Veldheer has taken virtually every snap as the first team left tackle, while the right side has been manned by Cooper Carlisle at guard and Khalif Barnes at tackle. Jackson wouldn’t commit to those five being the Week 1 starters, but it appears to be the most likely scenario.

“I’m not going to tell you I’m set, but I’m definitely moving in that direction,” Jackson said.

Besides keeping quarterback Jason Campbell upright, the Raiders ran well against New Orleans, including 32 yards on five carries by Michael Bush against the Saints’ first-team defense.