PRO FOOTBALL REPORT : WEEKDAY UPDATE : RAIDERS : Montoya Figures Brooks Will Play

Raider guard Max Montoya, a former Cincinnati Bengal, knows tailback James Brooks well. Brooks is a friend of his. Montoya said Brooks will play Sunday despite a dislocated thumb suffered in Cincinnati’s 41-14 victory over the Houston Oilers last Sunday.

“He’s got to be the toughest 185 pounds I’ve ever seen,” Montoya said. “Yeah, I’ll bet you he’ll be out there.”

Injury updates: During practice this week, the Raiders will monitor closely the sore hamstrings of cornerback Lionel Washington and tight end Mike Dyal.

Washington, who missed most of the last two regular-season games because of his injury, said he could have played in the final one against San Diego.

Is he ready?

“We’ll find out this week,” Coach Art Shell said. “He thinks he is. He says he is. He’ll get a good test this week.”

Dyal has done two stints on injured reserve this season with his pull, but the Raiders will likely use their free playoff roster move to activate him later this week.

Wonder why Raider quarterback Jay Schroeder was named the AFC’s offensive player of the month for December? In leading his team to a 5-0 record, Schroeder completed 59 of 99 passes for 918 yards with 11 touchdowns and two interceptions. His efficiency rating for December was 119.