Mark Davis has been steadfast in his commitment to play the final two years of his lease options in Oakland. That is until last Wednesday, after the NFL Owners meetings, in Houston. Mark said something a little bit different. Ed Graney of the Las Vegas Review Journal quoted Mark speaking about Sam Boyd Stadium.
“I wouldn’t say no to anything,” Davis said. “(Sam Boyd Stadium) is nice. I don’t know if it could (work) or not. I don’t want to answer that right now. It will be great for preseason games, and we’ll see what happens.
“The commitment is there to (stay in Oakland for two years) if we want to take it. I think it’s best for our players and their families to have that stability. It would give their families a chance to get to (Las Vegas) in the offseason and look around and not be rushed into the move.
Could This Be the Last Season in Oakland for the Raiders?
Oakland Raiders Officials Are in Negotiations With UNLV to Upgrade and Use Sam Boyd Stadium
Yesterday Joe Arrigo from scout.com broke a story about Oakland Raiders executives negotiating with UNLV. This would be to upgrade, and potentially use, Sam Boyd Stadium. That in and of itself is not breaking news. The expectation was that that Raiders would play a few preseason games there. However rumor has it that there is another reason for the timing of this breaking story.
Word on the street has it that when the Nevada Legislature approve 750 million in public funding, by a 2/3rds majority vote, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, was in complete disbelief. Sources say she was certain that SB-1 would fail. That she would have more time, and more leverage, to negotiate a deal with Mark Davis. However Nevada did pass it, and in the immediate aftermath Mayor Schaaf was furious with the results. Rumor has it that, in that moment, she threaten to lock the Raiders out of the Oakland Coliseum should the NFL approve their relocation.
Later that day however, the Mayor was not on her game during her annual State of Oakland speech. First she did not make a single mention of the Oakland Raiders. Also she mistakenly said Marshawn Lynch, a son of Oakland, was a great NBA player. It is very unlike Mayor Schaaf to make that type of mistake.
In the heat of the moment, anyone can say things they do not really mean. Last March, out of frustration, Oakland Councilman Noel Gallo told about his feelings on Mark Davis to the Bay Area News Group.
“I’m ready to kiss and say goodbye and help him pack his bags.”
Since that remark Gallo has walked back from that statement and continues to work hard at trying to keep the Raiders in Oakland.
So people are human and the Mayor of Oakland is no different. If she said those things that rumor suggests, then it is more than likely that it was said out of frustration.
That said, sources close to the situation told me the Raiders took the rumored threat of being locked out of Oakland, very seriously. And that one of the biggest reasons for the timing of negotiations with UNLV were a direct result of that whispered threat.
Because of that, Raider executives are planning for that contingency. They are making plans to add between 7,000 to 10,000 new seats at Sam Boyd Stadium, as well as, upgrading the locker rooms to NFL standards.
Now let me be clear, this is a contingency plan. But make no mistake, should the Raiders get NFL approval to move, and should they be locked out of the Oakland Coliseum after this season, they will be playing in Las Vegas, at Sam Boyd Stadium in 2017.
Things just got very real, and possibly very emotional. It certainly would explain Mark’s change of message and tone about playing the next two years in Oakland.
