Oakland Raiders Head coach Jack Del Rio didn't have much to say Monday about the knee injury rookie linebacker Neiron Ball suffered Sunday against the Chargers.

But Raiders fans can breathe a sigh of relief Tuesday -- for now, at least -- as general manager Reggie McKenzie spoke to reporters and said the injury is not expected to be season-ending, via the Bay Area News Group's Jimmy Durkin.

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McKenzie went on to say that Ball's injury and time frame for a return are both similar to defensive end Benson Mayowa, who recently missed four weeks with a strained knee. That will still be a hit to the Oakland defense, but it's apparently better than the Raiders originally feared.

The injury comes at an unfortunate time for Ball, as the fifth-round pick out of Florida had just hit his groove. After playing mostly on special teams with a few defensive snaps sprinkled in to start the year, Ball played almost the entire game defensively in Week 5 against the Broncos and performed well. That earned him a start Sunday in San Diego, but he was ruled out of the game at halftime.

Ball had taken the snaps that previously belonged to Ray Ray Armstrong, who will likely once again see more playing time. With Ball in the lineup, the Raiders had an athletic outside linebacker who proved he could defend the pass and mix it up in the run game. So regardless of how much team he misses, Ball will be sorely missed.