Oakland Raiders

Heyward-Bey's catch excites Cable

David White, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, August 27, 2009

(08-26) 21:32 PDT -- Rookie Darrius Heyward-Bey ran right as he reached back to his left, all the while starting to fall down on a pass route over the middle.

This is the exact sort of play that spelled incomplete pass all of training camp, particularly for a wide receiver who struggled enough to make the easy catches, never mind the spectacular.

Not this time. Heyward-Bey came down with a tumbling catch in traffic, much to the delight of his teammates and coaches during practice Wednesday in Napa.

"He had a great day of catching the ball," coach Tom Cable said. "Right after he caught it, I said to him, 'Your mistake is you showed me you can do that and, so now, the expectation goes up. That's who you are. That's what you're capable of.' "

That's why the Raiders drafted him with the No. 7 overall pick of April's draft, when most everyone thought they were nuts. Only now is Heyward-Bey starting to make common and difficult catches alike while limiting his daily drops to one, maybe two a day.

"It's a catch that needed to be made," Heyward-Bey said. "Ran a play, caught it, whatever."

If only it'd been that easy all the time.

For weeks, Heyward-Bey's track speed was hindered because he focused so hard on securing the ball or running the perfect route. He often waited a half-second after the catch before putting his speed to use.

The sooner Heyward-Bey can catch-and-run in one fluid motion, the sooner he can be a legit downfield threat and not a $23 million decoy.

"Catches like that, they build a lot of confidence," Cable said.

Player swaps: The Raiders signed cornerback Mike Hawkins, who is in his third NFL camp this month, and claimed Dolphins defensive tackle Joe Cohen off waivers.

They released cornerback Jason Horton and receiver Samie Parker.

Briefly: Starting free safety Hiram Eugene is out with a pectoral strain. ... Strong safety Tyvon Branch had two interceptions, with one in the end zone. ... Practice went 2 1/2 hours, the longest of training camp. ... The Raiders' 31-day stay at the Napa Valley Marriott ends with a morning practice today.