Latest On Raiders’ Future
In an interview with Ray Ratto of CSNBayArea.com, Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf reiterated the city is still interested in keeping the Raiders despite Las Vegas’ aggressive pursuit. The Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure committee navigated a key hurdle in the process of bringing an NFL team to Vegas by approving the $750MM in public funds for a potential $1.9 billion Raiders stadium.
Schaaf told Ratto she’s not interested in winning a public-perception battle with Las Vegas, with Oakland and Vegas on the surface heading in opposite directions regarding their interest in the Raiders. She confirmed negotiations are ongoing with the Raiders’ Oakland point man Larry McNeil but declined to offer much in the way of specifics.
“As Mayor of Oakland, it’s my job to remain fully focused on what I can do to responsibly keep the team where they belong, here in Oakland,” Schaaf told Ratto. “While Nevada lawmakers consider making the largest public investment in a private stadium deal in history by approving a $750MM public subsidy for a facility in Las Vegas, I will continue to work with the NFL and the Raiders’ designee Larry McNeil to iron out a deal that works for the team, the league, the fans and the taxpayers in Oakland.”
Schaaf reiterated her stance on public funding, categorizing the appetite for using that financing method as being much lower in Oakland than it is in Las Vegas. She instead called on business leaders in the Bay Area to get involved since the public-subsidy component of this prospective new stadium offer won’t be substantial.
“There is a long and complicated history between this team and this city,” Schaaf told Ratto. “We’ve learned from the mistakes of the past and we won’t repeat them. Oakland is neither rolling over, nor giving up. Now is the time for everyone in our region to pull together to show the NFL and the Raiders that their future is in Oakland.”
For what it’s worth, Raiders veteran left tackle Donald Penn said, via NFL.com (Twitter link), Mark Davis continues to inform the team he’s “doing everything possible” to try to keep the Raiders in Oakland. This comment runs counter to Davis’ numerous assertions he will move the team to Las Vegas if Nevada green-lights the finances. The plan must now be approved by the state legislature and Nevada governor Brian Sandoval.
Just today, Davis said, via Matt Youmans of the Las Vegas Review-Journal (on Twitter), “I think everybody wins in this. We still have work to do. We’re going to make Las Vegas and Nevada proud.”
Raiders president Marc Badain also told Youmans (via Twitter) Davis wants to make the league “an offer it can’t refuse,” and categorized today as a key step toward securing such a proposal.
Schaaf told Ratto she is “constantly” working to keep the Raiders, albeit in a way that is fiscally responsible for the city. She noted the Bay Area’s wealth and the region’s location are key selling points for both the Raiders and the NFL, pointing out that those factors likely induced the league to make the Raiders third in line for Los Angeles behind the Rams and Chargers in February’s seminal decision. She also mentioned the Ronnie Lott-backed group as bringing energy to the project, even if scant details have emerged on what kind of impact that developmental venture’s had to date. Davis and Lott have engaged in discussions, however.
“Oakland has a lot to offer to this team and the NFL. The Coliseum site is the most accessible and transit-rich location for professional sports in the country, the Bay Area is a tremendous market for the league both in terms of sports and ancillary development opportunities and the regional fan base here is without comparison,” Schaaf said.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Raiders’ Vegas Stadium Takes Step Forward
A Thursday decision from the Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure Committee represents another step toward the Raiders moving to Las Vegas. The committee tasked with presenting a funding plan for a prospective $1.9 billion stadium approved $750MM in public money to be used for this project, doing so after months of negotiations, according to an Associated Press report.
This proposal will still need to see approval from Nevada governor Brian Sandoval and the state legislature, but after the figure above brought some dispute within the SNTIC, today’s decision represents a hurdle cleared in this process.
“We are excited and thanks to the committee,” Mark Davis said via text to USA Today Sports (via ESPN.com).
Sheldon Adelson and Las Vegas Sands threatened to withdraw financial support if the $750MM threshold was not met; the committee needed to do so this month to meet a predetermined deadline, one that was already extended. We’d also previously heard the Raiders and Vegas were going to move on if the SNTIC didn’t approve these funds, but the sides are clearly serious about this venture.
The plan for collecting public money stems from a hotel tax raise, similar to the Chargers’ downtown stadium proposal in San Diego, and the Raiders are slated to contribute $500MM. Adelson is planning to put $650MM toward the venture, one that proponents of today’s ruling hope to accelerate in order for Sandoval and the legislature to green-light it in time for an NFL vote in January.
The Raiders, who haven’t been shy about relocating sans-sufficient NFL support, would still need to receive the customary 24 votes from the owners to move. Once thought to be against this proposal due to the gambling component, the NFL likely won’t stand in the way of this project if it makes it through the state hurdles, Vincent Bonsignore of the Los Angeles Daily News tweets.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
PFR’s Impact Rookies Series
All summer long, longtime scouting consultant Dave-Te Thomas of The NFL Draft Report has been breaking down the draft class of every team in the league and identifying the players that can immediately make a difference. The Impact Rookies series, which wrapped up today with a look at the Seahawks, provides unique insight to this year’s NFL freshman class from a veteran guru who worked closely with several teams around the league leading up to the draft.
Here is the full rundown of the Impact Rookies series:
AFC East
AFC North
AFC South
AFC West
NFC East
NFC North
NFC South
NFC West
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/14/16
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves from around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- Signed: DL Jimmy Staten (Twitter link via Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com)
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: WR Josh Boyce (Twitter link via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal)
New England Patriots
- Signed: WR DeAndrew White (Twitter link via Doug Kyed of NESN)
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: DE Jimmy Bean (Twitter link via Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com)
- Cut: LB Curtis Grant
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: WR Chris Harper (Twitter link via Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: DT Rodney Coe (Twitter link via Roy Cummings of WFLA)
Washington Redskins
- Signed: C Austin Reiter (Twitter link via Mike Jones of the Washington Post)
Elijah Shumate Works Out For Raiders
- Safety Elijah Shumate worked out for the Raiders this week, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets. The undrafted rookie out of Notre Dame spent time with the Buccaneers this summer.
[SOURCE LINK]
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/13/16
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: RB Blake Sims (link via Matt Zenitz of AL.com)
- Cut: RB Gus Johnson (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: WR Marquis Bundy (via team announcement)
- Cut: WR Chris Hubert (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
Chicago Bears
- Signed: RB/KR Raheem Mostert (Twitter link via agent Brett Tessler)
- Cut: RB Senorise Perry (Twitter link via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune), OL Laurence Gibson (Twitter link via Biggs)
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: CB Sammy Seamster (Twitter link via Todd Archer of ESPN.com)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: LB Reshard Cliett (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Cut: LB Kyle Kragen (Twitter link via Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post)
Indianapolis Colts:
- Signed: CB Tay Glover-Wright (Twitter link via Wilson), S Lee Hightower (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Cut: DT Kelcy Quarles, OL Adam Redmond (Twitter link via Wilson)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Cut: WR Shaq Evans (Twitter link via Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com)
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: CB Tre Roberson, CB Julian Wilson (via team announcement)
- Cut: OT Carter Bykowski, S Shamiel Gary (via team announcement)
New England Patriots
- Cut: DB Mike Hilton (Twitter link via Doug Kyed of NESN.com)
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: CB Taveze Calhoun (Twitter link via Joel A. Erickson of The Advocate), TE Jake Stoneburner (Twitter link via Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com)
- Cut: FB Austin Johnson (Twitter link via Nick Underhill of The Times-Picayune), DE Bobby Richardson (Twitter link via Erickson)
New York Giants
- Signed: LB Deontae Skinner
- Cut: QB Logan Thomas (Twitter link via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY)
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: OT Takoby Cofield (Twitter link via reps at Precision Sports)
- Cut: LB Jason Fanaika (Twitter link via Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com)
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: QB Aaron Murray (via team announcement)
- Cut: WR Marcus Johnson, TE M.J. McFarland (injury settlement, Twitter link via Wilson)
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: DE Tylor Harris (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle), QB Jake Heaps (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times), OL Michael Ola (Twitter link via Condotta)
- Cut: WR Kasen Williams (Twitter link via Condotta), DT Justin Hamilton (Twitter link via Condotta) and WE Rodney Smith (Twitter link via Condotta)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: LB Cameron Lynch (Twitter link via Roy Cummings of WFLA News Channel 8), DT Rodney Coe (Twitter link via Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times)
- Cut: RB Russell Hansbrough (Twitter link via Auman)
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: QB Alex Tanney (Twitter link via Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com)
- Cut: OL Ronald Patrick
Washington Redskins
- Cut: OL Nila Kasitati (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s John Keim)
Raiders Cut James Cowser From IR
- The Raiders waived defensive end James Cowser off their IR list with an injury settlement, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
Raiders OL Matt McCants Takes Pay Cut
Raiders offensive lineman Matt McCants took a pay cut from $1.671MM to $675K, according to a source who spoke with ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter). In the new deal, McCants will receive a $325K signing bonus, bringing his total compensation to $1MM. In essence, McCants is taking a $671K pay cut in order to remain with the Raiders this season. 
McCants was a restricted free agent this offseason and the Raiders used the $1.671MM tender on him. Had he signed elsewhere, the signing team would have been forced to give Oakland a sixth-round draft pick.
McCants, 27, offers big size at the tackle position with his 6’5″, 308 pound frame. A sixth-round pick of the Giants in 2012, McCants found his way to the Raiders in 2013 and has appeared in 26 games ever since. Last year, he appeared in just two games. Squarely on the roster bubble in each of the last two seasons, McCants had little choice but to accept the pay cut.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
AFC Notes: Watt, Maxwell, Raiders, Jaguars
J.J. Watt worried whether or not he’d be healthy enough to return to football in the days following his groin surgery this winter, per Deepi Sidhu of HoustonTexans.com. The Texans‘ defensive end dynamo, however, said the rehab from his July back surgery didn’t faze him nearly as much.
“After the first surgery, there were some days there where I really, really questioned whether or not I would ever be able to play again,” Watt said. “Just some of the stuff we were dealing with from a rehab standpoint, just the way recovery was going early on…way back in January and February, there was a very low point there.
“[After the groin surgery] I was in a hotel room in Philadelphia for 10 days straight not being able to really walk or anything. With this this back surgery, after going through the first one…it was almost like, ‘screw it, let’s get it over with, let’s get through it.’ This one has almost been a fun challenge to overcome.”
Houston activated Watt from the Active/PUP list last week and is expected to deploy him for the Week 1 Bears matchup. Counting five playoff games, Watt has started 85 consecutive contests going into his sixth season.
Here’s more from around the league on the eve of Week 1.
- Dolphins cornerback Byron Maxwell was blunt when asked about why he left the Seahawks in free agency in 2015 to join up with the Eagles, as James Walker of ESPN.com writes. “Cash flow, all day,” Maxwell said. “They were close. But I can’t make that back in my lifetime. So I had to go.” Philadelphia gave Maxwell a six-year, $63MM contract with a whopping $25MM guaranteed. However, after he struggled in his first season with Philly, he was shipped to the Dolphins and had his contract restructured. After being in the shadow of Richard Sherman with Seattle, Maxwell is now the No. 1 CB for the Dolphins.
- If the Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure Committee doesn’t vote to green-light sufficient funds for a Raiders stadium, the sides will move on, Bleacher Report’s Jason Cole tweets. This is viewed by Las Vegas and the Raiders as a one-shot deal, per Cole. The SNTIC has until Sept. 30 to come up with a financing plan, but the issue over how much public money will be contributed remains the sticking point. Developers are seeking $750MM in public contributions for the $1.9 billion stadium. With Oakland having made next to no progress on plans for a Raiders long-term site, the team could pivot back to Los Angeles, which may again have both the Chargers and Raiders interested after both had previously moved to other projects.
- Dave Caldwell viewed his first three Jaguars teams as flawed to the point the team needed “perfect” efforts to be in a game late, Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union writes. “Now we can overcome a bad play, a fumble, a backed-up situation, a deficit,” the fourth-year Jags GM said. “Offensively, we can score quickly and defensively, I think we can hold that fort down.” Jacksonville’s accumulated a 12-36 record during the first three seasons of the Caldwell/Gus Bradley regime.
- After matching C.J. Anderson‘s offer sheet, extending Brandon Marshall through 2020 and avoiding a franchise tag season for Von Miller, the Broncos reached an agreement to extend Emmanuel Sanders through 2019.
Zach Links contributed to this report
Raiders Place Mario Edwards On IR
The Raiders have placed defensive lineman Mario Edwards on injured reserve, Adam Caplan of ESPN was among those to report (Twitter link). Edwards suffered a hip injury during the team’s exhibition opener last month and will now miss at least the first eight games of the regular season.
Injuries have been a common theme in the brief NFL career of Edwards, whom the Raiders chose in the second round of last year’s draft. The ex-Florida State Seminole suffered a mysterious neck injury that prematurely ended his rookie season, and he didn’t receive medical clearance to return until May.
When healthy, Edwards served as a bright spot for the Raiders last year, racking up 42 tackles, three forced fumbles and two sacks in 14 games. He worked at both end and tackle along the way and rated as one of Pro Football Focus’ best run-stoppers among edge defenders. Edwards figured to complement superstar Khalil Mack and new acquisition Bruce Irvin in an improved Raiders pass rush this year, but the club will have to wait until at least November to see the trio in action at the same time.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.