NAPA — Chris Kluwe knows a lot about punting a football, but even he can’t figure out a way to kick it farther than Marquette King.

“He’s got a cannon for a leg,” Kluwe said after practice Monday at Raiders training camp. “I think I could have kept up with him when I was 22 or 23, but right now, power-wise, he’s got it.”

Going into the second exhibition game Friday night against New Orleans, the competition between the seasoned Kluwe (eight years with Minnesota) and the thunder-footed King is too close to call.

“Marquette has worked extremely hard and gotten better,” Raiders coach Dennis Allen said. “The consistency with him as far as get-off times, the little details, that’s what we’re hoping to see.”

King had farther punts with better hang time Monday, just as he did in the exhibition opener when his lone kick measured 50 yards (it was fumbled and recovered by the Raiders), and Kluwe’s traveled 36 yards.

“This year I’ve gotten so much better mentally,” King said. “Now if I hit a bad punt, I don’t even think about it. I’m to the point where I feel I’m going to hit a good one every time.”

King has received numerous pointers from Kluwe, a writer who put his laptop to work in a story about their competition on the Monday Morning Quarterback website created by Sports Illustrated’s Peter King.

Kluwe said he never told Marquette King he was writing the story, and King said he hasn’t read it, hoping to shield himself from the Internet while he focuses on his job.

“When I came into the league, no one helped me out when I could have used some help,” Kluwe said. “There are some things you learn as a veteran that as a rookie you just don’t know.”

When King’s punts tailed to the left, Kluwe told him he was dropping the ball too far to the inside. An inside shank brought advice that the nose of the ball was too far down or that King’s eyes had strayed from the ball.

“He’s a very cool guy, with a lot of knowledge about a lot of stuff,” King said. “You can’t treat your competition mean just because you’re competing. He’s trying to live a life like I’m trying to live a life.”

Signed out of Fort Valley State in 2012, King came to the Raiders with little more than a powerful leg, punting with an outdated two-handed drop and very little knowledge of the fundamentals of his position.

In the days leading up to the ’12 exhibition finale, King felt a pop in his left foot while doing squats in the weight room. The foot ballooned on the flight to Seattle, and the Raiders placed him on injured reserve. After extensive rehab, he began kicking again in December.

Kluwe’s skill set includes the dying tactic of kicking to the corner, something fewer and fewer punters attempt since the advent of the Aussie rules-style kick as popularized by Darren Bennett of the San Diego Chargers in the mid-1990s.

With adequate blocking, Kluwe’s punts are virtually impossible to block — the only time it happened in his career came when he dropped a snap.

“I feel confident in my abilities, I think Marquette should be confident in his abilities,” Kluwe said. “If both of us punt well, there will be room in the NFL for both of us.”

Cornerback D.J. Hayden is expected to be cleared for contact Friday, and the hope is he will be ready to see action in the third exhibition game against the Chicago Bears on Aug. 23. Hayden returned to practice, still wearing a red no-contact jersey.

After participating in each of the Raiders’ first 12 practices, free safety Charles Woodson was given the day off. Cornerback Tracy Porter did not finish practice because of an undisclosed injury.

Running back Latavius Murray missed his second straight practice and his chances of unseating Rashad Jennings appear slim.