LOS ANGELES - The Las Vegas Raiders signed Japanese kicker Kansei Matsuzawa to their 16-member practice squad, the U.S. National Football League club said Monday.

The University of Hawaii product missed being the first Japanese to make the 53-man roster of an NFL team when the list was unveiled a day earlier. Being a member of the practice squad, however, will leave a chance open that he could appear in a regular-season game.

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