NAPA, Calif. (AP) — The offseason moves that brought Ron Bartell and Shawntae Spencer to the Oakland Raiders on the surface seemed to be a perfect a union.
A team looking to go in a new direction at cornerback brought in two veterans sorely in need of fresh starts.
Bartell and Spencer have brought sage leadership skills to a young secondary in Oakland that is adapting to a brand new defensive system after years of playing predominantly press-man coverage.
Whether they can be impact players for the Raiders (No. 23 tie in the AP Pro32) as well as teachers remains to be seen with the first test coming in Monday night's exhibition opener against the Dallas Cowboys (No. 15, AP Pro32).
___
Online: http://bigstory.ap.org/NFL-Pro32 and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL
