NAPA — Quick hits from the Raiders practice session Tuesday morning:
Strong safety Tyvon Branch made the defensive play of the day by intercepting a pass at the goal line intended for David Ausberry and taking it the other way, arms outstretched.
On a goal line play, and coordinator Jason Tarver imploring the defense to deny the run, quarterback Matt Flynn play-faked and looked toward Ausberry. Branch read it perfectly and caught it in stride — a 99-yard touchdown had it been a game situation.
Wide receiver Denarius Moore, after a couple of early drops during drills, looked swift and sure catching slant passes late in practice.
Coach Dennis Allen, who has stressed physicality and toughness from the outset, had the Raiders wearing pads for the third straight day.
One twist — the offense, instead of wearing its usual white practice jerseys, was wearing jerseys with more of a silver tint.
Wide receiver Jacoby Ford missed his second day of practice with an undisclosed injury. He worked with the training staff without a limp before practice and watched in his jersey.
Also missing were linebacker Miles Burris, defensive tackle Pat Sims, offensive tackle Menelik Watson, guard Lucas Nix, running back Latavius Murray, and defensive lineman Brandon Bair
Working at the starting left guard spot was Tony Bergstrom for the second consecutive day after Nix opened camp with the first team.
Flynn continued to be the most consistent passer. During a 7-on-7 drill, he threw a perfect strike to a leaping Reece against the defense of rookie D.J. Hayden (still wearing a red no-contact jersey).
Travionte Session made the best catch of practice, sinking to his knees for a Flynn pass and catching it just off the ground despite tight coverage from Tracy Porter and Branch.
Andre Holmes also checked in with a highlight-quality grab on a lob from Tyler Wilson against solid defense by Taiwan Jones.
Season-ticket holders in attendance were growing restless with dropped passes, getting on running back Darren McFadden after he mishandled a routine swing pass.
The Raiders take a mandatory day off Wednesday before returning to practice Thursday at 2:20 p.m.
For more on the Raiders, visit the Inside the Oakland Raiders blog at ibabuzz.com/oaklandraiders. Follow Jerry McDonald on Twitter at twitter.com/Jerrymcd.
