Jon Gruden has made some unconventional personnel moves in his short time as coach of the Raiders, and now add this to the list: Oakland is reportedly working out free agent guard Richie Incognito.
NFL Media reported Monday that Incognito "wants to play again." Incognito, 35, retired after the 2017 season, then changed his mind. But the Bills released him in May 2018 and he didn't play last season.
But Incognito was at the top of his game when he retired, as he had made three straight Pro Bowls with the Bills from 2015-17. According to the NFL Media report, Incognito is reportedly "in shape and feeling well in all aspects."
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When he announced his retirement, Incognito said he was suffering from liver and kidney failure brought about by stress. He has been involved in several controversial incidents during his career. He was suspended in 2013 by the Dolphins for threatening and bullying teammate Jonathan Martin. After sitting out the 2014 season, he signed a free-agent deal with the Bills. But in January 2018, Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue accused Incognito of using racial slurs in a playoff game. No other players came forward to say they'd heard anything.
Incognito, once voted the "dirtiest player in the NFL" in a 2009 Sporting News poll, found trouble once again in May 2018, when he was placed on an "involuntary psychiatric hold" after an altercation at a Florida health club.
But if the 6-3, 320-pound Incognito is healthy, he would be an upgrade on an offensive line that tied for the fifth-most sacks allowed in the NFL last season.