Professor

Kiffin has players feeling good again

excerpt:

Here come the Oakland Raiders. No more jokes, please; they've already heard them all.

"We hear people talking; it's all bad," wide receiver Ron Curry said. "We've been counted out already and nothing's even started. They already have us 0-and-whatever in the division and maybe winning one or two more games than last year.

"Once things get going, they're not on the boat now, so don't start smiling if things get turned around."

With that, let the rescue effort begin anew. The Raiders report for training camp today at the Napa Valley Marriott. They've got 45 days to get tip-top for the Sept. 9 season opener against the Detroit Lions at the Coliseum.

First-year head coach Lane Kiffin scheduled only eight two-a-days, down from 11 scheduled last summer, but don't think he's getting soft. On Wednesday, he cut popular special teams captain Jarrod Cooper, who was suspended by the NFL last week for violating the league's steroid policy.

The Raiders also released strong safety Darnell Bing, who played at USC when Kiffin was an assistant there. The latest cuts came one day after Kiffin released long snapper Adam Treu, a Raiders staple since 1997.

Think of this as Kiffin's way, subtle or otherwise, of serving notice that only a handful of leftovers from last year's 2-14 outfit should consider themselves untouchable between now and season's start.

None of this should come as a surprise, seeing as the Raiders are a league-worst 15-49 the past four seasons. Raiders owner Al Davis, it seems, is giving Kiffin -- his fourth coach since Jon Gruden bailed after the 2001 season -- a lot of leg room to do what he sees fit.

"I like what I see so far," cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha said. "Lane wants us to have fun. He brings in competition, and we love that. Everybody's happy. Whatever can help us win, I'm fine with it."

Offensive lineman Robert Gallery likes the "fun environment." Center Jake Grove said coaches "take care of us."

The list of happy players goes on and on.

The trick is figuring out if that speaks volumes of Kiffin, or if it reveals a lot about how they felt about previous coach Art Shell. There' no telling yet because, frankly, players were giving the same happy sound bites this time last summer when Shell replaced Norv Turner, just as they did two years before that when Turner replaced Bill Callahan.

Players once praised Shell's hiring because he was a Hall of Fame player with postseason experience as a coach.

Now, they're pumping Kiffin based on his USC ties. For the good feelings to remain, players will need to see results in the form of regular-season victories, preferably up front.

"Every year, everybody feels good right now regardless of what's going on," Curry said.

"Everybody has to feel like they have a chance no matter what happened last year. All 32 teams have a chance to win it all. We're all tied for first right now.

"We want to go out there and prove we're better than what we put out there last year."

Bush signed: Fourth-round draft pick Michael Bush agreed to an undisclosed contract Wednesday, becoming the sixth of 11 drafted rookies to sign before training camp.

Bush, a running back from Louisville, was a Heisman Trophy favorite entering his senior season before he broke his leg in the season opener. He sat out offseason workouts but is expected to be ready for camp.

Russell talks: No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell's agent, Eric Metz, continues to negotiate a deal with the Raiders that could secure up to a rookie-record $30 million in guaranteed money. Neither side is commenting on the talks.

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