ALAMEDA, Calif. -- The Oakland Raiders signed free-agent quarterback Kyle Boller to undisclosed terms Thursday, one day after Bruce Gradkowski tore a pectoral muscle while lifting weights.
Gradkowski will undergo surgery for the injury Friday, but he's expected to be fully healed by the start of training camp in July, his agent, Ralph Cindrich, confirmed in an e-mail.
The addition of Boller gives the Raiders three healthy quarterbacks on their roster entering the upcoming minicamp and OTAs, with former No. 1 overall pick JaMarcus Russell and Charlie Frye.
Russell lost his job midway through last season because of ineffectiveness, and he's expected to compete with Gradkowski to get it back this season.
Boller never lived up to his billing after being drafted 19th overall by the Baltimore Ravens in 2003. He started nine games as a rookie and all 16 the following season. But because of injuries and ineffectiveness, he eventually lost his job and played last season with the St. Louis Rams.
Boller is familiar with new Raiders offensive coordinator Hue Jackson, who was the quarterbacks coach in Baltimore in Boller's final season with the Ravens. Boller didn't play at all in 2008 because of a shoulder injury.
Boller, a former University of California star, has made 46 starts in his NFL career, throwing 50 interceptions and just 48 touchdown passes. He has completed 56.8 percent of his passes and has a career rating of 70.6.
The Raiders are looking for better play out of their quarterbacks this season and were linked to trade talks with the Philadelphia Eagles for Donovan McNabb before he was dealt to the Washington Redskins.
Russell had a disappointing third year in the NFL. He completed 48.8 percent of his passes, with three touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 50.0 rating that was the lowest in the NFL in 11 years before he lost his job to Gradkowski.
Russell has been participating in offseason workouts, but Cable wouldn't get into details about how he has looked.
"He's here. He's working," Cable said. "He's doing everything that everybody else is doing, has been here since the start of the second week. Has been doing it like everybody else. That's all I can tell you."
Gradkowski provided an immediate spark after replacing Russell, leading Oakland to comeback victories in two of his first three starts. He got hurt midway through his fourth start, suffering a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee and a partially torn MCL in his right knee, and didn't play the rest of the season. He completed 54.7 percent of his passes with six touchdowns and three interceptions on the season.
Frye started the final three games last season, completing 60.9 percent of his passes with one touchdown and four interceptions.
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press