The Edgerton Hartwell signing showed up quietly on the transaction list on the club Web site, without so much as a corresponding story or press release.

No terms were available, although Hartwell, attempting to rebuild a promising career derailed by injury, likely got no more than the veteran minimum.

In a perfect world, Hartwell returns somewhere close to the form he displayed alongside Ray Lewis with the Baltimore Ravens, compiling 331 tackles from 2002 through 2004, production that earned deal with a potential $26.5 million from the Atlanta Falcons.

If not, Hartwell will be like safety Donovin Darius last season, who was brought in to bring mental toughness but was deemed not healthy enough to hold up and was cut before the regular season began.

Hartwell played only 13 games in two seasons for Atlanta, the victim of an Achilles' tear. He signed with the Bengals last season and didn't make it out of training camp, giving him an entire season to get healthy.

Although the Raiders haven't divulged their plans for Hartwell, he likely will compete at strong-side linebacker, an unsettled position for Oakland since Bill Romanowski's had his last concussion in 2003.

During his most productive period with the Ravens, Hartwell was a left inside linebacker, playing in between Ray Lewis and left outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, who was primarily a pass rusher.

Atlanta signed him to play middle linebacker in a 4-3 defense in between Keith Brooking and Demorrio Williams.

Although middle linebacker Kirk Morrison has the versatility to play outside -- he was a weak-side starter as a rookie -- it's doubtful such a move would even be considered unless Hartwell impressed the coaching staff to the point where they thought he could hold up over 16 games in the middle.

The Raiders will be open to any player or idea which can shore up a rushing defense ranked 31st in the NFL (145.9 yards per game), was last in yards per carry allowed (4.8) and gave up 100-yard games to 10 different running backs over the course of a 4-12 season in 2007.

The Raiders hope aggressive strong safety Gibril Wilson, signed during free agency, will help in that regard. The Raiders are also hoping that moving end Tommy Kelly full-time into the three-technique spot vacated by Warren Sapp will have an effect, as will a return to form of Terdell Sands, who played poorly in 2007 after being beset by personal problems in the offseason.

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