Filed for print . . .



Winning a game on the road is no reason to get a big head.



Raiders coach Jack Del Rio brushed aside any thought Monday his 2-1 Raiders would overlook their next road assignment, no matter how much the Chicago Bears are struggling.

The Bears are generally considered to be the weakest of the four remaining winless NFL teams, the others being Baltimore, Detroit and New Orleans.

The Raiders, by contrast, are riding high, having erased an 11-game road losing streak and a 16-game losing streak in the eastern time zone with a 27-17 win over the Cleveland Browns.

Oakland has won two straight _ the first time in a span of 43 games that’s happened _ is generating some positive buzz around the NFL and came out of the Browns win relatively healthy.

“We’ve got way too much work to do,” Del Rio said at his weekly press conference. “We respect everybody. We fear nobody. Certainly we understand (Chicago has) a lot of talented players an coaches that work hard.

“We’re going to do our best each and every week to prepare and put together the best active 46 we can and go compete.”

Chicago is its first year under John Fox, who hired Del Rio has his defensive coordinator in Carolina in 2002 and in Denver for the past three seasons.

Chicago is without starting quarterback Jay Cutler, and backup Jimmy Clausen struggled in a 26-0 loss to Seattle as the Bears offense finished with seven first downs and punted on all 10 possessions.

Fox told reporters he wouldn’t rule out going to San Jose State product David Fales, a practice squad player for Chicago last season who was waived at the 53-man cut down but later brought back to the roster.

“I’d consider anybody on the 53-man roster,” Fox said. “That’s why they’re here.”

Raiders safety Charles Woodson said in an interview Sirius XM NFL radio Monday the key to putting wins together is tunnel vision.

“It’s simple. You’ve just got to focus on the next one,” Woodson said “Two and one is great, but in the grand scheme of things, there’s a long way to go. We can’t be worried about down the road or what can be or what might be. . We’ve got to focus on Chicago and getting on a roll, getting on a plane, going across the country and focusing the way we did (against Cleveland).”

— — Amari Cooper leads all NFL rookies with 20 recepetions for 290 yards and has already become a key component of a promising offense. Yet Del Rio used him on a pair of punt returns against Cleveland _ he gained nine yards on one, lost nine on another _ and plans on doing it again depending on the situation.

“There’s an element (of risk) for anybody you put out there,” Del Rio said. “I think you play the game. He’s certainly a guy that we think is a real good football player that will be able to do some things in space, provided we are able to give him some blocking.”

Former Raider wide receiver Tim Brown made the Hall of Fame in part because of ability returning kicks, something that was a big part of his game at Notre Dame. On the flip side, Woodson, because of his importance to the defense, was seldom allowed to return punts by owner Al Davis.

Cooper did not return kicks at Alabama, but Del Rio said, “He’s got good hands, catches the ball easy, and has got some run ability. So we’ll take advantage of that . . . we’d like him to make better decisions than he did Sunday.”

— Tight ends continue to run free in the Raiders secondary, and Del Rio thinks he knows why.

“Somehow they are going right down the field without us being able to see them,” Del Rio said, tongue firmly planted in cheek. “We’re going to see if we can remove that cloaking device.”

Gary Barnidge caught six passes for 105 yards. Baltimore tight end Crockett Gillmore and Cincinnati’s Tyler Eifert, like Barnidge, both also had career days against the Raiders.

— TJ Carrie, who played extensively at strong safety but also some at cornerback, will be available for similar duty against the Bears although Del Rio wouldn’t commit to it.

— Defensive tackle C.J. Wilson didn’t finish the game with a calf injury, and defensive tackle Justin Ellis didn’t suit up for the second straight game with an ankle injury. Their status for the Chicago game is uncertain.

— The Raiders released cornerback Chimdi Chekwa from the practice squad, where he has been since final cut-down to the 53-man roster. Anthony Morris, a seventh-round draft pick, was waived from injured reserve.