Report: Raiders in contract dispute with their veteran kicker

ALAMEDA - Sebastian Janikowski, who hasn't seen the field since the Raiders' second exhibition game, is at an impasse with the Raiders over his contract, according to an ESPN report Monday.

Janikowski, 39, is in the last year of a contract in which he is scheduled to make $4,050,000, making him the fourth-highest-paid kicker in the NFL.

The Raiders reportedly worked out three placekickers Monday - Mike Nugent, Josh Lambo and Marshall Koehn, all of whom were released by their teams at Saturday's final cutdown.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Janikowski was guaranteed $238,000 - or one-seventeenth of his salary - for still being on the roster Tuesday.

If the Raiders go ahead with Janikowski at his current contract, his salary as of Saturday would be guaranteed for the season.

The Raiders released Giorgio Tavecchio at the final cutdown.

Janikowski did not play in either of the Raiders' last two exhibition games.

He was last seen against the Los Angeles Rams in the second game, kicking off twice and converting an extra point after a touchdown.

Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie has already moved on from two veteran players who he believed had bloated contracts - defensive tackle Dan Williams and offensive tackle Austin Howard. He also so far hasn't budged on Pro Bowl left tackle Donald Penn's request to get a raise from his scheduled $5.8 million.

SECONDARY WOES

The Oakland Raiders invested plenty of draft capital in boosting a secondary that allowed more big pass plays than any other NFL team a year ago.

Now that they have a chance to show off how those changes will improve the defense in the season opener on Sunday at Tennessee, one of those players will be on the sideline recovering from an injury while the other's status is unknown.

The Raiders placed second-round safety Obi Melifonwu on injured reserve Tuesday, forcing him to miss at least the first eight weeks of the season with a leg injury.

Meanwhile, first-round cornerback Gareon Conley hasn't taken part in a full practice since June because of a shin injury and is running out of time to get up to speed for the opener against the Titans.

Conley had his first limited practice last week and took part in a walkthrough Tuesday. He has three practices left before the opener.

Conley and coach Jack Del Rio were unavailable for comment Tuesday.

The Raiders did get some good news on the injury front in the secondary when cornerback David Amerson was cleared to practice after sustaining a concussion in the third exhibition game.

VEGAS STADIUM UPDATE

The Federal Aviation Administration has determined that the Raiders' proposed stadium in Las Vegas would not be a hazard to aircraft.

The federal agency's decision announced Tuesday clears the way for officials in Nevada's Clark County to consider approving construction permits.

County officials are expected to consider zoning permits at a meeting Wednesday.