Tough night for Grove, Huff

SAN FRANCISCO -- Center Jake Grove and safety Michael Huff are in the middle of the Raiders' offensive and defensive schemes -- figuratively and literally. Saturday, they found themselves the centers of attention, for all the wrong reasons.

Grove was flagged twice on one drive, for a false start and holding. His infractions pushed the Raiders into first-and-15 and second-and-14, though they overcame both for first downs. Grove also sent a shotgun snap past quarterback Andrew Walter, though it didn't appear to be much off the mark.

Veteran Jeremy Newberry replaced Grove midway through Oakland's third possession, before any other offensive linemen came out.

Huff, meanwhile, looked nothing like the No. 7 overall pick of the 2006 draft. He's supposed to be able to tackle and cover with equal skill, but had trouble with both. On the 49ers' first play from scrimmage, Huff missed a tackle on tight end Vernon Davis and let him escape for a first down. Later, he got locked in coverage with tight end Delanie Walker and never turned around to see Alex Smith's 19-yard touchdown pass.

Huff even flubbed on special teams, getting picked off by a blocker on a Raiders kickoff.

COACH ON THE MEND

A week ago, spending 4½ hours on the field at McAfee Coliseum knocked out coach Lane Kiffin. He got a case of mononucleosis and wound up spending two days in the hospital. Kiffin made it through Saturday's loss to the 49ers, but looked a bit spent in the post-game interview room.

"I feel fine," he said. "I know you're doing your job, but I feel bad that it's a distraction to the team."

EXTRA POINTS

For the second week in a row, safety Hiram Eugene was the first player to line up at nickel back for the Raiders.

Outside linebacker Sam Williams had two nice-looking tackles on the Niners' first three plays from scrimmage.

One of the Raiders' more successful plays was the quick hitch pass to Ronald Curry. Walter hit him twice on such throws, and Curry juked a defender each time.

Tight end John Madsen wound up with no one within 20 yards of him on a third-quarter pass. He caught the ball from Daunte Culpepper, shook Keith Lewis' tackle and gained 44 yards.

Culpepper fumbled twice for the second consecutive week. The Raiders have fumbled seven times in two games, though they have lost only one.

Linebacker Ricky Brown had five tackles to lead the team, as he did against the Cardinals a week earlier.

The Oakland captains were defensive tackle Warren Sapp, center Jeremy Newberry and kicker Sebastian Janikowski.