ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) Oakland Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor took another step in his recovery from a concussion and faces one final test before getting clearance to play Sunday.
Pryor was approved for full contact in practice and took increased reps while splitting time with Matt Flynn on Friday. Coach Dennis Allen said Pryor is making "a lot of progress" and did not rule out the possibility that he could start in Oakland's home game against Washington this week.
"I feel 100 percent, definitely," Pryor said. "I don't know what it's going to be but I know I'm going to study these next two days real hard as if I will be starting."
Pryor was injured after absorbing a helmet-to-helmet hit from Denver linebacker Wesley Woodyard in the fourth quarter of last week's 37-21 loss to the Broncos. Pryor was knocked out on the play but got up and finished the drive before giving way to Flynn.
According to Allen, Pryor passed all the concussion protocol tests required by the NFL but the coach added that the team wants him to take one additional test Saturday as precaution.
"It's not something we have to do," Allen said. "It's something we want to do. I want to make sure we're making the right decision for this kid.
"The biggest thing is I like where he's at. I like where he's at mentally. Medically, we're going to continue to evaluate him. We want to get one more evaluation on him tomorrow to see how he responded. But he's making a lot of progress."
As buoyed as he is by Pryor's recovery, Allen declined to name a starter for Sunday's game against the Redskins.
As he has all week, Flynn continued to take the majority of snaps in practice. Pryor's workload increased from a day earlier, though he was still limited and is listed on the injury report as questionable.
"It's not something that gets better at the snap of a finger," Pryor said. "I definitely made progress, big progress, within a day, two days' time and I feel good. I feel real good."
A conditional third-round draft pick in 2011, Pryor has started every game for Oakland this year after making his first start in the final game of the 2012 season.
He beat out Flynn for the job during the final week of training camp and has had an uneven season so far. Pryor leads the Raiders in rushing but has thrown just two touchdowns in 12 quarters and is last in the AFC in pass attempts among quarterbacks with at least 55.
Pryor said he has spoken with Allen about the possibility of starting against Washington, though he understands the coach's decision to wait.
"Whatever (decision) he makes, I'm not going to be mad," Pryor said. "He's the head guy, he runs this team. He's our leader, so whatever our leader decides is what's going to happen."
Notes: DE Jason Hunter (quadriceps) missed a third straight day of practice and is questionable. ... LG Lucas Nix (ankle) was limited. ... S Tyvon Branch (ankle) and T Menelik Watson (knee) are out.
---
AP NFL website: http://pro32.ap.org/poll