Jack Del Rio says Raiders' turnaround starts now with positive thinking
NAPA, Calif. — Jack Del Rio believes the first step to turning around the Oakland Raiders is to get everyone to stop talking about the fact the Raiders need to be turned around.
That goes for team executives, coaches, players — even Raiders alumni who gathered here for an event at training camp over the weekend and received a clear message from the team’s new coach that a dozen years of irrelevance and upheaval shouldn’t be a topic of conversation.
"I told them, 'You guys can really help us by not referring anymore to negative things that have occurred here,' " Del Rio recalled to USA TODAY Sports, sitting in the team’s weight room behind the Napa Valley Marriott Hotel & Spa. " 'Let’s just talk about what we’re going to do going forward and the positives and bring us that great energy. That’ll help.' "
The plan to get everyone’s head in the right place doesn’t end there.
The Raiders have contracted a "mindset coach" to work with Del Rio’s staff on not only the message, but also ways coaches can keep their own energy flowing through nutrition, exercise, sleep and recovery. They’re playing music to fill breaks and emphasize points in meetings, focusing on positive reinforcement and encouraging players to express themselves.
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"You see the energy at practice," quarterback Derek Carr said. "There’s a hope out here. There’s a buzz. There’s a feeling that we have a good team. We know we can win."
Hope is one thing. Results are another for a franchise on its ninth head coach since its last playoff trip after the 2002 season — a span in which the Raiders are 56-136 with zero winning seasons and a minus-1,428 point differential.
But convincing players they deserve to win is critical to retraining the human brain, which can’t outperform a negative self-image, said Scott Peltin, who co-founded the executive performance firm TIGNUM and will visit the Raiders for a fourth time starting Wednesday.
Peltin connected with the team several months ago through Joe Gomes, the Raiders’ new strength and conditioning coach, who previously brought Peltin to work with a U.S. Army special forces unit at Fort Bragg. In addition to his work with the Raiders’ coaches, Peltin said, he has spoken with the team’s administration and sales department.
"We’re trying to hit the Raiders from all sides, really trying to build a sustainable, winning team," Peltin said. "A big part is teaching coaches to be better problem-solvers, role-model a high-performance mindset and have more energy and resilience."
If coaches are worn out, the thinking goes, their brains aren’t as agile and teaching opportunities are missed. So, in the same way Gomes trains players, Peltin said he’s trying to train coaches to keep themselves operating at peak capacity. He praised Del Rio as "such an open-minded guy."
Books by legendary college basketball coach John Wooden, among others, have shaped Del Rio’s belief that a positive mindset plays a huge role in achieving success, in the same way the former NFL linebacker tries to improve his middling golf game.
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"We’re developing young men, loving them up with positive praise, not just a constant beatdown," said Del Rio, who spent the past three seasons as the Denver Broncos’ defensive coordinator after a nine-year stint as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
"We’re going to drive them and push them hard and point out mistakes, but don’t just dwell on it, you know? That goes back to more of the positive thinking and positive reinforcement and helping them (have) positive energy and seeing themselves doing it right."
Carr credits former coaches Dennis Allen and Tony Sparano with starting the turnaround in 2014, when the team won three of its last six games after an 0-10 start. But there is a tangible difference in the vibe and tempo of practices from a camp a year ago, not to mention meetings.
"We’ll be in our quarterback room and all of a sudden we hear — BOOM! — the music come on, just to create the energy," Carr said. "There can’t be a dull moment, because that time is just as important as this."
Back at the team’s facility in Alameda, Del Rio said, the building has been freshly painted, cleaned and outfitted with fresh light fixtures, desks and imagery. The practice fields have been redone with proper drainage and a new 18,000-square foot weight room added, along with a steam room and other amenities.
The roster continues to be made over, too, with Carr and linebacker Khalil Mack leading an ascending core. The Raiders’ top draft pick this year, receiver Amari Cooper, is a stud who can play all over the field. In the first team meeting in April, Carr said, Del Rio told players they have the talent to win the AFC West.
"I’m not delusional. I know we have a lot of work to do," Del Rio said. "But I believe we have a really good, young group of players here. And I believe that we can make a difference with our staff. I believe it. We’re passing on that belief."
Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter @TomPelissero.