Wide receiver Juron Criner signed; Raiders add two others

Originally published on SBReport.net on July 29, 2012

The Oakland raiders announced the signing of fifth round draft pick Juron Criner on Sunday, the day before the team starts practice in Napa.

The contract agreement completes the signing of new general Manager Reggie McKenzie's first draft class

Criner, wide receiver out of Arizona, is another sign of a new era in Oakland, lacking the typical raider-esque speed that the late Al Davis coveted. Criner ran a 4.58 40-yard dash, instead Criner uses his size and athleticism to gain position on defenders and haul in the catch.

Criner's play in off season workouts has been sensational, consistently catching everything thrown his way. His play made wide reciever Louis Murphy expendable, as he was traded just last week to the Carolina Panthers for a conditional seventh round draft pick.

With training camp practices starting tomorrow Criner heads into Napa as the backup to Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Criner finished his senior season at the university of Arizona with 75 receptions for 956 yards and 11 touchdowns. In his junior year, Criner earned first team all PAC-12 accolades with 82 receptions, 1,233 yards, and another 11 touchdowns.

Oakland also announced the signing of two additional players Sunday morning: linebacker Chad Kilgore and wide receiver DeAundre Muhammad.

Kilgore, listed at 6-foot-1, 230 pounds, comes out of Northwest Missouri state and produced 2.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for a loss last year as a senior.

Muhammad is a smaller wide receiver listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds. In three years at Indiana Muhammad played 20 games, including hauling in 26 receptions for 238 yards his senior season.

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