Raiders veterans report to camp with 'first day of school' excitement

The day has arrived. And with it the Raiders veterans at their facility in Henderson to begin training camp. The offseason is officially over for the Raiders, which means the level of preparation for the 2022 season kicks into another gear.

“It’s like the first day of school,” said linebacker Denzel Perryman. “You see everybody, getting around everybody again, starting all over again. I wouldn’t say I’m nervous, but like I said first day of school all over again.”

First day of school is a feeling most everyone can relate to. You loved summer, but there’s always a feeling of a new beginning with the first day of school. New clothes, new supplies, new hope. Not to mention seeing some friends you hadn’t seen in a while.

The new friends in this case are the teammates and coaches with whom these guys will go into battle with every day for the next six months. Hopefully a bit longer than that, if all goes well.

Those hopes begin anew right now, as these guys shift into camp mode.

“Oh, of course. Of course,” Maxx Crosby said of his anxiousness and excitement on the eve of the first day of camp. “Last night I’m watching ‘Last Dance’ like I did last year before camp and the year before, it’s the same thing. Just trying to get my mind to a different place because to start training camp you got to be in a different place mentally. It’s here now. It’s super exciting every single year. It’s always a new challenge, new goals, new things going on, but it’s football at the end of the day, so there’s nothing more I’d rather be doing on earth, so we’re fired up.”

For those unfamiliar, Last Dance is a documentary miniseries focused around Michael Jordan’s 1997-98 season, his final season with the Chicago Bulls and his run at his sixth and final NBA Championship.

Yeah, hope springs eternal for Crosby and the Raiders. They feel pretty good about the team they have coming into this season, especially with Crosby now bookended by Chandler Jones and with the offense’s addition of the best receiver in football, Davante Adams.

Thursday this newly formed team hits the field for training camp day one.