Raiders: Michael Huff begins fulfilling promise

(12-12) 04:00 PST JACKSONVILLE, Fla. --

Admit it, you thought Raiders safety Michael Huff was a bust. C'mon, No. 8 overall pick in 2006, benched a couple of years ago ... c'mon, admit it.

If it helps, Huff practically thought he was a bust after his rookie season.

"When I got here, I was trying to make too many plays," Huff said. "I expected to get six or seven picks every year and live up to all those expectations of being a top 10 pick instead of just going out there and playing my game and relaxing. I was stressed, trying to do too much."

When he was benched five games into the 2008 season, Huff had one interception in 37 starts. His mom back in Irving, Texas, kept him propped up with pep talks, and after the 6-6 Raiders asked him to do more and not less this season, Huff can finally yell out, "Hey, Mama, just look at me now."

Besides playing a much stronger free safety, Huff capitalized on his blitzing opportunities and filled in very well at cornerback when needed. He had an interception, sack and five tackles in last week's 28-13 win at San Diego, and for the season has team highs with 59 solo tackles and three forced fumbles, plus four sacks and an interception.

While Huff always had the physical tools - he won the Jim Thorpe Award at Texas and ran a 4.34-second 40 at the NFL combine - the statistics are the result of hard work, experience and the confidence that comes from watching yourself on the big screen.

"Now that I have put those plays on film, I know that I can do it," Huff said. "So I can just out there and play football."

In the first (35-27) win over San Diego earlier this season, Huff was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week. His sack and forced fumble against Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers led to strong safety Tyvon Branch's decisive 64-yard return for a touchdown. Plus, he had nine solo tackles.

That sack was Huff's first of the season, and he's added three more in the last four weeks - not bad for a guy who had 1 1/2 in his first 64 NFL games.

"I love blitzing, especially when they don't expect us to do it," he said. "We never blitz so they don't really expect us to do it. We gotta make a play because we know if we blitz and don't make a play and give up a big ball, we know we're not going to be doing it much more."

Huff guessed he has blitzed 10 times this season, so he's hitting .400.

He has also played a lot at cornerback recently, after Raiders coach Tom Cable's hand was forced by injuries to Nnamdi Asomugha and Chris Johnson and by the erratic performances of rookie corners Jeremy Ware and Walter McFadden.

That was OK, as Cable started to sense last year that he could get more out of Huff.

"The situation with injuries this year probably has pushed him to play more corner and things like that, but I thought last year was really the turning point for Michael Huff," Cable said.

Huff played a little cornerback at Texas, and kept the rust off by occasionally taking snaps there in training camp and practice. And mentally, he's been up to the challenge of playing two positions.

"Back when I was young, I definitely couldn't have done it," Huff said. "Corner and safety back then would have been too much for me. Now that I have a few years under my belt, I have gotten adjusted to it."

And besides the blitzes, the Raiders are giving more looks defensively than they have in recent history - which plays into Huff's strengths.

"I am getting the chance to do more things, make more plays," he said. "That's the reason why they brought me here."

Who brought him here is up to debate, as there are reports that owner Al Davis wanted to draft USC quarterback Matt Leinart in 2006 and since-fired coach Art Shell convinced him to select Huff.

Either way, it worked out well, as Huff cherishes being a Raider as well as the Raider Nation - he's on Twitter and has given 24 tickets away to fans for each home game the last two seasons.

"Without the fans, we wouldn't be us, so I just love to put smiles on their faces," Huff said. "I got some stories where they bring their kids, it's their kids' first game ever. I imagine when I was a kid if I could have come to an NFL game I would have love it. So give back to the fans, help the little kids, I just love it."

E-mail Vittorio Tafur at vtafur@sfchronicle.com.

This article appeared on page B - 6 of the San Francisco Chronicle