2018 Oakland Raiders Training Camp: From A-Z
By Brad Weiss
Donald Penn’s foot
In Week 15 of the 2017 NFL season, Raiders star left tackle Donald Penn injured his foot during the team’s close loss to the Dallas Cowboys. While many remember that as the “Index Card Game,” for Penn, it was the end of his 2017 campaign.
Penn had surgery on the foot, and due to that, he missed his first regular season game since 2007. The anchor on the Raiders offensive line, he has been responsible for protecting Derek Carr’s blindside for the signal-caller’s entire career, and will be expected to do as such this season.
The injury to Penn was very serious, and it required him to miss the team’s entire offseason workout schedule until the last day. He is expected to be ready for training camp, but an injury like Penn suffered last season, a Lisfranc injury, is one that will be monitored until the team is sure he is 100 percent healthy.
The fact that Penn was able to practice without limitation on that final day of minicamp was a very good sign for the Raiders. The offensive line in Oakland will be one of the best in football again this season, and with Penn back at left tackle, it is really only the right tackle position that is up in the air entering training camp.