The Giants released defensive tackle Jay Alford in the final cutdown and the Raiders have signed the former 3rd round pick. This move was first reported by Profootballtalk.com. He rejoins his former defensive line coach Mike Waufle who is now the defensive line coach of the Raiders.
Alford was a third round pick out of Penn State by the Giants in 2007 and he replaces another former New York Giant defensive tackle on the Raider roster in William Joseph who was released in the Raiders final cutdown.
Alford is best known for being the guy who sacked Tom Brady in the final seconds of the game to end the Patriots hopes of a comeback in Super Bowl XLII. So he is somewhat of a hero among Raider fans and across the country.
He played in all but two games in his first two seasons, starting three of those games, before spending all of last season on injured reserve. In his second season in 2008 he collected 2.5 sacks along with 10 solo tackles and 5 assists. He is fully healthy now and played in all four of the Giants preseason games.
The Raiders released right offensive tackle Erik Pears to make room for Alford. This leaves the team thin for depth at offensive tackle. Khalif Barnes is the only backup tackle on the roster currently and he will be backing up both right and left tackle until further notice.
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