OAKLAND – The knee brace fullback Oren O'Neal wore underneath his jeans was evident.
He looked at his crutches and still held out hope he could play in the Raiders' season opener.
"Monday Night Football coming up," O'Neal said. "Maybe it ain't that bad. Maybe it's just a real bad sprain." Chances are it isn't a real bad sprain.
O'Neal was hurt on the opening kickoff of the Raiders' 24-0 exhibition loss to the Arizona Cardinals at McAfee Coliseum.
Raiders coach Lane Kiffin said O'Neal likely will be lost for the 2008 season.
"That's a big deal right there," Kiffin said. "There are a number of games last year he played even more for us than (starter) Justin (Griffith). "He's a guy when we run the ball he is in there play after play, a physical attitude."
The only other fullback the Raiders have is undrafted rookie Marcel Reece.
Kiffin said O'Neal's injury took a toll on the team mentally. "I felt our team's energy died down on the first play."
More energy was drained when wide receiver Drew Carter went down with an injury to his left anterior cruciate ligament that Kiffin said would end Carter's season.
Kiffin has criticized the Raiders' inability to bring in more players. With two key Raiders out, that's highlighted.
"It's just one of those things," Kiffin said. "You get some injuries like this, and now depth matters. If you don't have it, you better go find it."
Upshaw honored – A moment of silence was observed in honor of Gene Upshaw before the kickoff. Upshaw, the Raiders Hall of Fame guard and executive director of the National Football League Players Association, died Thursday morning after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. There was a loud ovation as a video featuring highlights of Upshaw's playing days was shown on the big screen.
Huff gets one on No. 7 – When the Raiders selected Michael Huff with the seventh overall selection in the 2006 NFL draft, some pundits felt the pick could have been used better.
Say on a quarterback, such as Arizona's Matt Leinart, who was taken 10th in the first round. And following one of the worst offensive seasons in league history, some, including owner Al Davis, wondered if the Raiders made the wrong decision.
Huff got the best of it Saturday by intercepting Leinart's first pass of the game. Leinart threw three interceptions and was benched in the second quarter in favor of Kurt Warner.
Leinart completed just 4 of 12 passes and left with a dismal 2.8 quarterback rating.
More injuries – Kicker Sebastian Janikowski (hamstring), punter Shane Lechler (quadriceps), cornerback John Bowie (knee), wide receiver Arman Shields (knee) and linebacker Grant Irons did not dress for the game.
Starting cornerback DeAngelo Hall played one series with his injured right hand before being replaced by Stanford Routt.
Read Jason Jones' Raiders blog at www.sacbee.com/raidersblog.
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