Raiders’ Amari Cooper aggravates injury, may miss game vs. Cowboys

KANSAS CITY, Mo — Barring a setback, Sunday carried the potential to be a long day for Amari Cooper.

The Raiders wide receiver was not 100 percent. Not even close, it appeared. Still, he was determined to gut through a left ankle sprain he suffered two weeks earlier, a decision presumably tied in some part to the matchup at Arrowhead Stadium carrying critical playoff implications.

It became a short day for him.

Midway into the second quarter, Cooper’s left ankle was rolled upon from behind as running back DeAndre Washington was tackled on a 9-yard carry. There was no gutting through that. He did not return during a 26-15 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs and now appears questionable, at best, to play next Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

He was targeted on one incomplete pass prior to his exit. Cooper caught 11 passes for 210 yards and two touchdowns in the teams’ first meeting Oct. 19.

The Raiders trailed 13-0 at the time of Cooper’s depature.

“He reinjured it,” coach Jack Del Rio said. “It is kind of a bite when it is already a little bit sore going in. Where that puts him now, we will evaluate as we go through the week.”

On a roll

The Raiders’ streak did not continue Sunday.

Bruce Irvin’s did.

The outside linebacker and team’s Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year candidate recorded two sacks. The performance marked his third straight game with at least one sack, recording four with two forced fumbles in that span. His effort wasn’t enough to prolong a two-game winning streak.

Defensive end Khalil Mack and inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman also recorded sacks.

“It’s cool, but we didn’t win,” said Irvin, who has 7½ sacks on the year. “Our objective was to win the game, and that was unfortunate. We have to keep pushing. It is what it is. They just outplayed us today.”

Mack leads the Raiders with 8½ sacks.

Notable

— A touchdown run earned Marshawn Lynch $400,000 for the second straight week. A 22-yard score Sunday pushed his season rushing total to more than 600 yards, activating an incentive in his contract. On Dec. 3, he cashed the same figure for surpassing 500 yards on a 51-yard touchdown against the New York Giants. Lynch finished with 61 yards on seven carries. He has 619 yards in 2017. A $600,000 bonus awaits should he total 800 or more yards.

— On the final play of the third quarter, Raiders tight end Clive Walford absorbed a heavy hit after scaling up for a Derek Carr pass. He exited the game and was diagnosed with a concussion.

— Defensive end Mario Edwards, Jr. had a right ankle injury in the first half. He was unable to finish.

— Safety Keith McGill II suffered a left knee injury but was seen walking OK in the postgame locker room. He is scheduled for an MRI on Monday.

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Contact reporter Michael Gehlken at mgehlken@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GehlkenNFL on Twitter.