Penn, 34, had missed much of training camp and preseason while holding out in search of a new contract. He is making $5.8 million in base salary this season but had been looking for a deal that would put him in the top 10 of offensive linemen.

The new deal, announced Friday, puts Penn in the top 15 and kicks in after this season.

”It’s good, now I can focus on football,” Penn said. ”I can just enjoy my teammates, enjoy everything, enjoy the process and just focus on football because there was a lot of doubt. I didn’t want to hit free agency again. That’s one thing I tried to make sure.”

Penn said his contract enables him to live out his childhood dream of retiring with the Raiders, a dream that didn’t look so promising even a week ago.

According to Penn, he went into last week’s game against Tennessee wondering if he would get a new contract.

”I had serious doubts,” Penn said. ”I definitely had serious doubts. I thought maybe we were going to wait until the offseason or wait until later on in the year, see how I was going to come into the season and play maybe. But they stared communicating. I’m happy to get it done.”

Penn’s extension gives the Raiders the highest-paid offensive line in the NFL. Right guard Gabe Jackson signed a $56 million, five-year extension this past offseason, while center Rodney Hudson ($44.5 million over five years) and left guard Kelechi Osemele ($58.5 million, five years) are also in the midst of lucrative deals.

Oakland’s line is also considered one of the best. The Raiders gave up league-low 18 sacks in 2016 and were sixth in rushing.

Getting back with that group, Penn said, was more important than his new contract. That and some respect.

”When you do something and you feel like you do something very, very well and you look at other people – and I’m not going to down nobody or nothing – but you look at other people and they’re not doing as well as you and they’re getting compensated a lot more than you, that was more of what it was,” Penn said. ”It’s like I’ve been doing this for so long and so many years. I’m not trying to be selfish, but when is it going to be my turn?

”They kept their word and did everything possible. It’s just a relief. Now let’s get onto the Jets.”

In addition to Penn’s extension, the Raiders announced that first-round draft pick Gareon Conley has been medically cleared and is expected to play Sunday in Oakland’s home opener.

”We all worked together to get me back and just wanted to make sure I was good when I came back,” Conley said. ”I just can’t wait to go out there and play. For the past three months I haven’t been doing anything. Just being out there with them, the DBs, the defense, it just feels good.”

—

More AP NFL: http://pro32.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-NFL

The post Raiders give left tackle Donald Penn $21 million extension appeared first on IdealCapper.

The Raiders held their first padded practice under new coach Jack Del Rio on Sunday, a milestone that excites players ready to get back to the physical part of football after an entire offseason away from it.

”You get tired of playing patty-cake football and pillow fighting,” left tackle Donald Penn said. ”Get some pads on and hit. That’s when you see who the real men are, who’s really tough. Everybody can look good in shorts. Pads show you what everybody has got. I love the first day.”

With contact limited under the collective bargaining agreement, teams are not allowed to practice in pads during OTAs, minicamp or an acclimation period at the start of training camp.

The focus up until this point had been on technique rather than physical play so there was still a bit of rust that needs to be worked off in camp. Del Rio said the Raiders looked like a team in its first day in pads.

”As coaches you know what you want it to look at in the end,” Del Rio said. ”We’re just focused on teaching and growing and developing and all those things. Energy was good but we’re a long way from being clean and still have work to do.”

While the first padded practice didn’t feature any physical Oklahoma-style drills with defenders taking ball carriers to the ground or other full-contact, the mood at practice changed for the players.

Middle linebacker Curtis Lofton said he still gets excited for this day even in his eighth season in the NFL.

”When you put the pads on, it’s real football,” Lofton said. ”The energy level, the intensity, everything increases that much more.”

Pads and contact also sometimes lead to heightened emotions and scuffles between players. But practice for the most part was incident free for the Raiders with the exception of a small run-in between running back George Atkinson III and safety Jonathan Dowling.

”You don’t want to let the emotions get too high,” Lofton said. ”You want to be right on the line. There’s going to be fights but at the same time you don’t want that because when it gets to be season time, that will cost yards and maybe lose games. We just have to keep cool heads.”

NOTES: Among the players who stood out were WR Michael Crabtree and RB Michael Dyer. Crabtree has made acrobatic catches each day of practice. Dyer, an undrafted rookie, has taken advantage of the extra opportunity with Trent Richardson inactive and broke off one long run. … WR Brice Butler returned to practice after sitting out Saturday. … WR Rod Streater, RB Trent Richardson, TE Clive Walford, WR Trindon Holliday and DT Stacy McGee remain sidelined.

—

Online:

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL

The post Raiders excited to break out the pads for first time appeared first on IdealCapper.