Former Auburn tight end returns to Las Vegas during Raiders’ shakeup

The Las Vegas Raiders have had an active two days since losing to the Cincinnati Bengals 41-23 on Sunday.

After the NFL team’s fifth consecutive loss, coach Antonio Pierce fired offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello and offensive-line coach James Cregg.

On Tuesday, Las Vegas announced pass-game coordinator Scott Turner would become the offensive coordinator and senior offensive assistant Joe Philbin would take over as offensive-line coach. In addition, former Raiders coach Norv Turner has joined the staff as a senior advisor.

During the comings and goings, a player waived from Las Vegas’ 53-man active roster on Friday returned to the Raiders as a practice-squad signee. Former Auburn tight end John Samuel Shenker had played in five games for Las Vegas and had his first NFL reception for a 7-yard gain in a 27-20 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Oct. 27.

Shenker joined Las Vegas as an undrafted rookie in May 2023 and has been with the team for most of the intervening time.

Last year after releasing Shenker in the roster reduction between the preseason and the regular season, the Raiders signed the tight end to their practice squad. He spent most of the season there, although he was released twice, and that allowed him to spend a week on the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad.

This season, Shenker again was released at the end of the preseason and re-signed for the practice squad. But he had played in Las Vegas’ previous five games when he was released, making his NFL regular-season debut in a 20-16 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 29.

Also joining an NFL practice squad on Tuesday was former James Clemens High School standout Monty Rice, who signed with the New England Patriots.

A third-round pick from Georgia in the 2021 NFL Draft, Rice played in 35 games with the Tennessee Titans across three seasons.

In 2024, after being released by the New Orleans Saints at the end of the preseason, Rice spent the first seven weeks of the NFL season on the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad before being released on Oct. 21.

Rice has not played this season.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.