ALAMEDA, Calif. (March 1, 2005) -- The Oakland Raiders released offensive lineman Frank Middleton, safety Ray Buchanan and tight end Roland Williams to get under the salary-cap limit by the deadline.
Buchanan is a likely candidate to be re-signed by the team for less money after he started all 16 games at free safety last season and became a defensive leader.
Middleton ended last season on injured reserve with a torn left quadriceps muscle. He said after the season he expects to be fully recovered by training camp and hoped the Raiders would keep him around. But the team certainly considered him a financial risk.
Williams played for the Raiders in 2001 and during the team's Super Bowl season of '02, though he was plagued by injuries most of that season. He returned to the team last year but was again limited by injury.
