(ADDING QUOTES) 




*Raiders sign Super Bowl MVP Desmond Howard away from Packers*
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For the Oakland Raiders, signing the previous season's Super
Bowl Most Valuable Player is becoming a trend.  And Desmond
Howard is a lot richer for it. 



Howard, whose electrifying kick returns helped the Green Bay
Packers to a 35-21 victory over the New England Patriots in
Super Bowl XXXI, was given a four-year, $6 million contract
today to play for the Raiders.  A source close to Howard told
SportsTicker on Tuesday night that the contract deal includes a
$2 million signing bonus for the Super Bowl MVP. 



"I think it's an emotional rollercoaster in some instances
because I'm leaving a team that I helped to win a world
championship," Howard said. 



After cornerback Larry Brown claimed the award for the Dallas
Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX, the Raiders rewarded him with a
four-year, $12 million free agent contract. 



The Raiders, who have said they plan to use Howard as a wide
receiver, announced the signing today at an afternoon news
conference.  Nearly out of football less than a year ago, Howard
will be catching passes from Jeff George, another of Oakland's
big free-agent signings. 



"Watching Jeff George, I've been a fan of his since college,"
Howard said.  "I played against him in the Big Ten (and) Jeff
George has the ability to take us to the Super Bowl." 



"Now we're putting people in place that are going to help us
win," Raiders coach Joe Bugel said.  "We're not ashamed to say
that we want to win Super Bowls here.  You win with people, and
we're bringing in people that are impact, explosive players." 



The Raiders used All-Pro receiver Tim Brown for some of their
return duties last season and Bugel said the team is going to
deploy some multiple-receiver offensive sets in 1997. 



"We're going to be in some four-wide receiver packages this year
so add another guy capable of getting down the field," Bugel
said.  "I talked to Tim Brown last night and told him that we
had a chance to add Desmond and he was very elated about this.
Timmy now feels that he can solely concentrate on the receiver
position." 



Two factors appeared to contribute to Howard's departure from
the Packers -- his higher price tag following his Super Bowl
success and a strong pitch from Raiders owner Al Davis. 



Packers general manager Ron Wolf told the Milwaukee
Journal-Sentinel in today's editions, "We know there's certain
players we're going to lose because they're going to be paid
more money than we can afford to pay.  That's obviously what
happened here. ... He wanted to go somewhere where he had the
opportunity to play." 



Howard's agent, Leigh Steinberg, revealed that Davis' interest
in Howard began during the negotiations with George. 



"Al said at that point that `Ultimately, I'd like to have a
chance to bid on Desmond,' " Steinberg said.  "It was Al Davis
who actually signed Desmond himself to a contract, which I don't
think he's done since he used to sign players underneath the
goalposts." 



Howard's 99-yard kickoff return with 3:10 left in the third
quarter of the Super Bowl turned the momentum in Green Bay's
favor and gave the Packers a 35-21 lead that ended up being the
final score.  The 26-year-old became the first special teams
player to win MVP honors at the Super Bowl.  He had four kickoff
returns for 154 yards and six punt returns for 90 yards. 



The 99-yard kickoff return was the longest in Super Bowl history
and marked the first time in Howard's career he returned a
kickoff for a touchdown.  Howard also became the fourth Heisman
Trophy winner to take MVP honors in the Super Bowl. 



Howard struggled in the NFL after winning the Heisman in 1991,
but he found a niche with Green Bay, leading the league in punt
return average (15.1) and touchdowns (3) during the regular
season.  In addition, he scored on a 71-yard punt return and set
up another score with a 46-yard return, helping the Packers to a
35-14 win over San Francisco in the NFC divisional playoffs. 



The Washington Redskins made Howard the fourth overall pick in
the 1992 draft, but he was claimed in the 1995 expansion draft
by the Jacksonville Jaguars and later was released before
signing with the Packers as an unrestricted free agent.