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Lamarcus Joyner will be playing in Oakland."As has been said many times this offseason Leon Hall Jersey , the Raiders have a lot of needs. Safety was one of them and so was slot/nickel corner. When the Raiders went after Lamarcus Joyner, they were looking to kill two birds with one stone. Joyner was listed with the safeties as a free agent because that’s where he played last season as part of the Rams Super Bowl run. But safety doesn’t define him. He’s played all over the secondary. That’s what he likes. That’s what defines him as a player. “It’s just something I’ve been doing since little league,” Joyner said over conference call. “I mean, high school, college, going from nickel to safety, nickel to safety, it’s what keeps me going. It keeps the season moving, refreshing for me. One season to be at nickel, the next to be at free safety. It motivates me to just enjoy the game much more. Just being able to have that versatility and being able to show one thing one year and another the next year.”That versatility to fill two holes is what the Raiders saw in him as well. And that interest had the Florida native literally turn completely around from his original plan as a free agent.“My initial thoughts were to get back to the East Coast, to kind of get back closer to home after being on the West Coast for three years,” said Joyner. “And in my mind I thought nothing was going to change that until I heard coach Gruden call. I kind of did a whole 180. After talking to him and some of the guys in the building Antonio Brown Jersey , I was very excited about the way they were going to use me and how people were happy to have me here. So, that was the biggest decision making point for me.”When the Raiders signed him, the thought process for me was wait, they can’t really be looking to pair up a 5-8 free safety with the 5-10 (generously) Karl Joseph who does his best work as a free safety, can they? That led to the natural answer to that question being that he was destined to be the team’s nickel corner in a similar role to the one Marcus Gilchrist played last season. That’s indeed the case. “I love the nickel back position. It’s a natural instinctual position for me,” Joyner continued. “I get to do a lot of things, I’m great at tackling, I’m great at beating guys to the point, I’m great at covering. There’s a lot of things that the nickel kind of has tied up into its identity as a role that fits me, so I’m very excited.”You have to be a smart player to switch back and forth from nickel to safety on the fly the way Joyner does. Every indication I got from him was that he is an extremely smart guy. That intelligence is what the staff gushed about with regard to Marcus Gilchrist and why they talked about Gilchrist becoming a coach once his playing days are over.The issue with Gilchrist is that he’s a fringe NFL starter. He can get you by in a pinch, but he isn’t going to take your secondary to the next level. Joyner has that ability. He was retained last season by the Rams on the franchise tag and became a big part of their run to the Super Bowl.Joyner’s addition also fits with the Raiders’ decision to re-sign 6-3 safety Erik Harris to a 2-year deal, giving them the requisite size for covering tight ends and lay the wood in the box. Harris and Karl Joseph emerged over the latter half of last season as the best options the Raiders had at the safety positions with the potential to be the answer long term. They also still have the option of bulking up either the cornerback or safety position further through the draft. Or both.Follow @LeviDamien ALAMEDA Derek Carr Jersey , Calif. (AP) — Oakland Raiders cornerback Dominque Rodgers-Cromartie abruptly retired Tuesday, two days after not playing a single snap on defense for the second time this season.The two-time Pro Bowl defensive back made the announcement on social media , not long after notifying team officials of his decision to call it quits after seven games with the Raiders."Just a shocker to see him gone because he was a great teammate and a great player for us," cornerback Rashaan Melvin said. "He showed us how to cherish the game and approach it the right way. He's always dancing, always rapping, always singing. Just showing his personality no matter what, through the ups and downs." Rodgers-Cromartie's retirement came hours before the NFL trade deadline, during which the Raiders were surprisingly quiet.Oakland had been one of the busiest teams over the past two months, acquiring three first-round picks in deals that sent pass-rush specialist Khalil Mack to the Chicago Bears days before the season opener and wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys last week.There had been speculation the Raiders might be willing to make additional deals but the deadline passed without one. Outside of Rodgers-Cromartie retiring and the team activating James Cowser from the practice squad, Oakland made no other roster moves."We know who we have going forward and it's on us to go out there and execute and play well and try and stick around," quarterback Derek Carr said. "You want to make sure that you're around, what's the plan Reggie Nelson Jersey , all those things. I think that was on a lot of guys' minds. Just knowing that that's almost over with and we're just playing ball, it's nice for our guys."The 16th-overall pick in 2008, Rodgers-Cromartie played for five teams during his 11-year career. He earned Pro Bowl honors in 2009 with the Arizona Cardinals and again in 2015 with the New York Giants.The 32-year-old was signed by the Raiders just before the regular season to add experience to a secondary that was in the midst of an overhaul.Rodgers-Cromartie was on the field for 20 defensive plays in Week 1 but had been playing mostly on special teams since then. He did not play on defense during Sunday's 42-28 loss to the Indianapolis Colts but took 22 snaps on special teams.Rodgers-Cromartie is the second NFL cornerback to retire since the start of the season. Vontae Davis of the Buffalo Bills stunned his teammates when he announced his decision at halftime of their Week 2 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers."When something like that happens, I'd rather it happen that way than halftime of a game," Carr said. "I understand what he's doing, I understand why. Coach addressed it with us and he said, ‘Text him, everyone show him love, congratulate him on a great career.' There's no hard feelings at all."