Are the Raiders back in talks to play a final year in the Coliseum?
A local ABC7 report on Friday indicated that negotiations between the Raiders and Coliseum officials have resumed for the first time since December, despite the fact that the city is still pursuing a lawsuit against the team.
#BREAKING sources tell ABC7 the #Raiders are now in negotiations with Coliseum officials to play in Oakland next season.. It’s the first talks they’ve had since the lawsuit was announced in December
— Larry Beil (@LarryBeilABC7) February 8, 2019
It has been reported that the only viable stadium options for the Raiders right now would be to accept a rental agreement with the 49ers or begrudgingly return to Oakland, but both would require Raiders owner Mark Davis to work with counterparts he would prefer not to do business with.
It has not been reported that the Raiders have been in contact with the 49ers, but in response to the ABC7 report on the Coliseum, Michael Gehlkin of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that negotiations between the Raiders and Coliseum officials are not currently taking place.
“The Raiders recently were informed that a deal they walked away from in December, featuring a $7.5 million rent agreement to play in Oakland next season, is still on the table, said an official for the board that oversees the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum,” Gehlken reported on Friday.
“Scott McKibben, executive director of the Coliseum Authority, said Tuesday in a phone interview with the Review-Journal that he issued the update to Raiders president Marc Badain in an email exchange this week. There was no immediate indication whether the team will exercise the option.”
So exactly what’s going on?
One theory is that the Raiders are hoping the league will eventually step in and sign off on a less preferred (from the league’s standpoint) option, but with so little time, what other options are out there?
Whatever happens, the Raiders have made it clear that they want to play in the Bay Area next year. Unfortunately, ownership has so many burned bridges locally, its hard to imagine how any of their few Bay Area options will come together without the league stepping in.
twtter: @raidersbeat
just play at levi stadium for the year.. give us fans a real football stadium.. tired of playing in bum *** baseball stadiums, were going to have our own banging stadium next year, quit being stubborn Raiders
I say move on to Vegas and take that money Oakland wants and up grade UNLV to NFL standards and play there. Then when the new stadium open everyone will be living there. They can use it later for practice field.