Latest On Las Vegas
Las Vegas has increased its effort to pry the Raiders from Oakland, but should that avenue close, the city is not going to shut down its efforts to add an NFL franchise. The Chargers are further along than the Raiders in their quest to secure a stadium deal from their respective city, only Las Vegas is monitoring San Diego’s negotiations and would seek a union with the Chargers if the Raiders’ venture ends up shy of a Silver and Black desert relocation.
“My husband and I have had season tickets at the Chargers for the past 30-plus years and we would love that, and Alex Spanos already has some relationship with us here in the city — he’s been a developer for us in the ’70s and ’80s,” Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman said during a Dan Patrick Show appearance (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk). “I know they’re absolutely looking to move and that’s another place to go.
“Whether it’s the Chargers or Oakland, that would really be exciting.”
After talks stonewalled between the Chargers and San Diego last year, the sides have progressed to the point the issue could be in the hands of the voters this fall, with a downtown stadium measure likely to appear on ballots. Whereas Oakland and the Raiders have made next to no progress by comparison with Oakland, so Vegas’ primary option seems to be more realistic at this point, if the city can secure funding for the $1.4 billion domed stadium proposed.
As for Vegas’ first choice: one owner tells Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman the chance the Raiders move to Sin City has hit the 50 percent threshold and may be as high as 75 after starting out as a borderline-laughable notion.
That anonymous owner said other owners and executives around the league to whom he’s spoken on this matter have softened their stance on Las Vegas as an NFL city. While the owner told Freeman that three or four years ago, there was virtually no chance the league would have considered Vegas. Despite John Mara still coming out against this idea, Jerry Jones has voiced intrigue about the proposition. More owners could be coming around to Jones’ line of thinking.
“That’s not the case any longer,” he told Freeman. “One of the things owners see is there’s a lot of money to be made there. A lot of money will ease those gambling concerns.”
For Mara’s side to win out, it would take eight “no” votes to block a Raiders-to-Vegas venture if it gets that far. Freeman hears there aren’t eight owners who will do so, which would represent a marketed improvement in support for this once-laughable move. And while this still could be a bluff on Mark Davis‘ side to increase his leverage in talks with Oakland, but the owner categorized that chance as a small one to Freeman.
Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Karl Joseph Sits Out Raiders Minicamp
- Raiders first-round pick Karl Joseph had to watch from the sideline during his team’s rookie minicamp this past week as he recovers from a torn ACL. While the organization is confident that the safety will be ready for the regular season, Joseph is frustrated that he can’t participate with his teammates. “It’s tough, just not being able to go out there and practice and learn the stuff, but I am still learning in meeting rooms,” Joseph told Josh Dubow of the Associated Press. “Right now, I am just focusing on rehabbing and getting healthy.”
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Latest On Las Vegas, Raiders
The interest that Raiders owner Mark Davis is showing in Las Vegas isn’t a bluff, or an attempt to play one city against another, writes Vincent Bonsignore of the Los Angeles Daily News. According to Bonsignore, Davis is becoming increasingly convinced that “the Oakland ship has sailed,” and is pushing to make Las Vegas the Raiders’ new home.
“It’s really a tremendous opportunity,” Davis said. “A fresh start in a growing market that’s easily accessible to areas of the country that are hot-beds for Raider Nation. But not just that, we want to be a member of the community. We want to build a strong, local fan base, and we believe we’ll do just that. And when people think about Las Vegas, it won’t just be for entertainment and vacations and casinos. They’ll think about the Raiders. The Las Vegas Raiders. That’s a game-changer in so many ways.”
While Davis sounds enthusiastic about the idea of moving his franchise to Vegas, he’s not the only owner interested in the possibility. One high-ranking NFL executive tells Bonsignore that Vegas would be “a great home for the Raiders,” and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones suggested publicly this week that he would likely be on board with the idea.
Jones didn’t specifically mention the Raiders when discussing the idea of an NFL team moving to Vegas, but as Todd Archer of ESPN.com details, the Cowboys owner indicated he would welcome the discussion, calling the city “one of the real crown jewels of communities” in America.
“As you well know, you have to have the right situation,” Jones said. “You have to have the right ownership, want to and then a lot of other considerations that have to come into play. For me, I think that certainly the fact that Las Vegas has a gambling aspect to it is far overshadowed by the entertainment value, if you will, family appeal, that you have, the convention appeal. So it does not have disfavor with me, in my opinion, relative to being an NFL city.”
Jones is just one owner out of 32, but he played an instrumental role in the Rams’ move to Los Angeles, throwing his support behind Stan Kroenke‘s project and getting other owners on board with the Rams’ relocation plan. If the Cowboys owner pushes equally hard for a Raiders move to Las Vegas, it would be a great sign for Davis’ franchise.
Still, although the Raiders look like the strongest candidate to consider a move to Las Vegas, mayor Carolyn Goodman suggested during an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio (SoundCloud link) that if it doesn’t work out with the Raiders, the city plans to continue to push forward with its stadium project in the hopes of attracting another NFL team.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Raiders Sign Greg Townsend Jr.
- After announcing 13 undrafted free agent signings earlier this week – and another one below – the Raiders have confirmed three more additions to their roster. Wide receiver Jaydon Mickens (Washington), guard Denver Kirkland (Arkansas), and guard/center Terran Vaughn (Stephen F. Austin) are the newest Raiders, according to a team release.
- The Raiders announced that they have signed undrafted rookie free agent defensive end Greg Townsend Jr. from USC, as ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez writes. Townsend’s father played for the L.A. Raiders from 1983-93 and returned to Oakland in 1997. Townsend, who dealt with injury and health issues while in school, finished out his collegiate career with 6.5 sacks and 68 tackles in 33 career games (15 starts).
Raiders Sign DeAndre Washington
- The Raiders have announced the signing of fifth-round draft pick DeAndre Washington, a running back from Texas Tech, as Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com writes. Washington was drafted to help give Oakland support behind leading rusher Latavius Murray. In a recent interview with KGMZ-FM in San Francisco, Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie had high praise for the tailback. “DeAndre, he’s more than just a third-down back,” McKenzie said, via the team’s website. “He can pound it up in there. The Raider Nation will find out fast just how physical he is.” Oakland has now signed four of its seven draft picks with only three to go: second-round defensive end Jihad Ward, third-round defensive end/outside linebacker Shilique Calhoun, and sixth-round outside linebacker Cory James.
Owners Getting Comfortable With Raiders In Las Vegas?
Are owners getting more comfortable with the idea of the Las Vegas Raiders? One anonymous owner thinks that Mark Davis & Co. have a chance of getting NFL approval for the move. 
“I think it would be a tough sell, but I don’t think it’s impossible,” the unnamed owner told Gary Myers of the New York Daily News. “If they put such a good deal in front of the Raiders, it has a chance of getting support. I would prefer not to have the Raiders there. I would prefer they stay where they are. Oakland is a great market, but if there is no opportunity to put a stadium there, it would be hard to blame them for moving. I wouldn’t necessarily be opposed to it if it’s the best alternative. If it’s between Las Vegas and being stuck in an awful stadium, there is nowhere else to go.”
Raiders Sign 13 Undrafted Free Agents
The Raiders announced that they have signed a baker’s dozen of undrafted free agents. The group, of course, is made up of mostly unheralded prospects, but there are a few notable names in the bunch, including Duke wide receiver Max McCaffrey. McCaffrey, the son of former Denver wide receiver Ed McCaffrey, posted a 4.46 second 40-yard dash at his pro day last month.
Here’s the full list of Oakland’s UDFAs:
- WR K.J. Brent (Wake Forest)
- C Ross Burbank (Virginia)
- LB/DE James Cowser (Southern Utah)
- DB Kenneth Durden (Youngstown State)
- DB Antonio Hamilton (South Carolina State)
- WR Johnny Holton (Cincinnati)
- DL Drew Iddings (South Dakota)
- DT Darius Latham (Indiana)
- WR Max McCaffrey (Duke)
- DB Tony McRae (North Carolina A&T)
- TE Ryan O’Malley (Pennsylvania)
- G Oni Omoile (Iowa State)
- LB Kyrie Wilson (Fresno State) ($5K bonus, per Aaron Wilson)
Vegas Mayor Optimistic About Raiders Move
The Raiders‘ long-term future remains up in the air, but there have been indications in recent weeks that Las Vegas is becoming a more and more viable landing spot for the franchise. There are still plenty of roadblocks to clear, including getting funding for the proposed Vegas stadium and getting at least 24 NFL owners to approve having a franchise in America’s gambling capital. But Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman is confident that those hurdles can be overcome.
“The Raiders will come if Nevada handles this properly,” Goodman said during an appearance on ESPN Radio’s Capital Games podcast today, as ESPN’s Andy Katz writes. “[Raiders owner] Mark Davis has assured us that Las Vegas is not getting played in a Raiders stadium deal. I know we will have a team.”
Raiders Sign Karl Joseph
Another 2016 first-round pick has signed his rookie contract, with safety Karl Joseph becoming the latest to put pen to paper. The Raiders announced late Monday night that Joseph has formally signed his four-year deal, which features a fifth-year option for 2020.
Joseph, who played his college ball at West Virginia, was one of the more surprising picks of the first round. Although he was considered by many observers, including our Rob DiRe, to be the most talented safety in this year’s draft, Joseph was not viewed as a lock to come off the board in the first round, due to the season-ending ACL injury he suffered last season.
The Raiders, however, made Joseph the 14th overall pick last month, which puts him in line for a contract worth about $11.884MM over the next four years, per Over the Cap’s data. That deal features a signing bonus of approximately $6.843MM, and will be worth several million more if the team eventually picks up his option for the 2020 season.
Oakland has now locked up three members of its seven-man draft class, having also confirmed the signings of fourth-round quarterback Connor Cook and seventh-round offensive lineman Vadal Alexander.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Raiders Sign Connor Cook
- The Raiders announced the signing of seventh-round guard Vadal Alexander. Alexander is the first member of Oakland’s draft class to officially put pen to paper.
- The Raiders also announced the signing of quarterback Connor Cook. The Michigan State product fell to Oakland in the fourth-round of last month’s draft.