Doug Martin

Martin had been on IR with a shoulder issue, but now that he's been let go, he'll be able to try to catch once with another team once he's healthy. How soon that might be remains to be seen, but Martin could resurface at some point this season, once injuries require teams to seek backfield help.

Coach Jon Gruden said Sunday that Martin had been dealing with a shoulder injury. After rushing for 723 yards in his first year with Oakland in 2018, Martin looked to be the No. 2 back for the Raiders behind Josh Jacobs, but he'll now look for work with another club. Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington will now compete for the top backup spot behind Jacobs. Martin will stay on IR barring an injury settlement with the club.

Tafur suggests that over the first week of training camp, Martin was the team's "most impressive runner," but in the same line he noted that first-rounder Josh Jacobs has shown great hands in that span. In any case, Jacobs has plenty of time to open eyes with his running ability and his lofty draft status (he was the 24th overall pick in April) suggests that he's destined to be the Raiders' top back in 2019. That said, Martin, who averaged 4.2 yards on 172 carries with the Raiders last season, profiles as a capable complement, and it's a good sign that he's looked sharp early on in camp. After all, the Raiders seemed ready to move one from Martin once they signed Isaiah Crowell in free agency, but he was subsequently re-signed by the team after Crowell tore his Achilles in OTAs.

Having failed to draw significant interest on the open market after the Raiders let him walk in free agency this offseason, Martin is now back in the mix with an Oakland team that lost veteran Isaiah Crowell to a torn Achilles during a team workout. This comes just weeks after Marshawn Lynch announced his retirement, leaving first-round rookie Josh Jacobs as the clear favorite to open the 2019 campaign in the lead role. While it's unlikely the Raiders view the 30-year-old Martin as a direct replacement for the 26-year-old Crowell, the former Buccaneers standout should still have every chance to compete with DeAndre Washington and Chris Warren for backup work behind Jacobs and receiving ace Jalen Richard.