Johnathan Abram, Damon Arnette return to Raiders’ practice

The Raiders got a few members of their secondary back on the field when they held their first practice of the week Tuesday.

Johnathan Abram and Damon Arnette practiced in a limited capacity. Abram (concussion/knee) has missed two of the last three games, and Arnette (concussion/neck) has missed the past two.

Coach Jon Gruden said the good news of having them back was tempered by the three additions from the secondary to the reserve/COVID-19 list in the past few days.

“We put Erik Harris, (Daryl) Worley and Isaiah Johnson (on the list),” Gruden said. “So we’ve had obviously a lot of people coming and going in our secondary, but that’s the best I can do right now.”

Wide receiver Henry Ruggs, who was on the COVID-19 list and missed Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, is expected to be back in the building this week. Gruden said he wasn’t sure of Ruggs’ status for Saturday’s game against the Miami Dolphins at Allegiant Stadium.

“We’ll have to see how he is with the next phase of the protocols,” Gruden said.

Defensive lineman Clelin Ferrell did not participate in Tuesday’s practice. He played seven snaps Dec. 13 against the Indianapolis Colts before suffering a shoulder injury and did not play against the Chargers.

Gruden said Ferrell’s status for Saturday also is uncertain. Linebacker Nicholas Morrow (concussion) and wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (concussion) are in similar situations after getting in limited sessions Tuesday.

“We’ll see who’s healthy and who’s not, and in the next 48 hours we’ll have a much better picture,” Gruden said.

There’s a chance linebacker Takk McKinley could make his Raiders debut Saturday. The 2017 first-round pick of the Atlanta Falcons last played Oct. 25 before being released and claimed by the Raiders off waivers.

“I’m anxious to see this guy play also,” Gruden said. “We’ve got a lot of moving pieces.”

Evaluation time

While the Raiders are still technically alive for a postseason bid with their chances hovering around 1 percent, the evaluation period has arrived.

Gruden and the rest of the front office must get a better picture of what they have on the roster as they prepare to make offseason decisions.

That hasn’t always been easy with so many players missing because of injuries and COVID-19.

“It’s always about evaluating the guys that play,” Gruden said. “We’d love to see Arnette play. We’d love to see Abram play. We’d love to see Ferrell play. These are young players that need to play, and unfortunately the virus and the injuries have gotten in our way.”

Transactions

Defensive tackle Maliek Collins returned to the practice field Tuesday and has been designated for return from injured reserve. He went on the list Dec. 2 with a shoulder injury.

David Irving was placed on the practice squad COVID-19 list.

Rookie linebacker Tanner Muse was removed from the COVID-19 list but remains on injured reserve.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.