I cut my teeth in journalism covering the Oakland Raiders.
I was 22, fresh out of college, and I got to rub elbows with the likes of coach John Madden, Kenny Stabler, Howie Long, Raymond Chester, Dave Casper, Cliff Branch, Todd Christenson, Rod Martin and the late Gene Upshaw to name a few.
It was a great five years. The Raiders owned the Bay Area at that time, as the 49ers were not very good. Year in and year out, the Raiders were in the playoffs.
It was a sight to see after an Oakland win. You would see many of the players having a beer with fans in the parking lot. The Raiders were a blue-collar team cheered on by blue-collar fans.
I reported on some great games, including the Super Bowl win over the Philadelphia Eagles, the holy roller game against the San Diego Chargers, the playoff win over Cleveland’s “Cardiac Kids.”
The win over Cleveland was played in snowy conditions, and the wind chill made it near zero. The weather was so bad, press box workers had to wipe the windows in the press box several times during the game. The media was allowed on the field for about the last five minutes of the game. I went down there, but I paid the price. My right hand seemed to take forever to thaw after the game.
Brian Sipe was on the verge of leading the Browns to another comeback win when Oakland safety Mike Davis picked off a pass in the end zone to secure the win.
I also had the opportunity to cover the 49ers and their failed quest for a three-peat, but nothing beat the experience covering the Raiders back then.
Why all the talking about the Raiders?
I may be in the minority here, but I’m rooting for them to come to Las Vegas if Oakland can’t get its act together. Oakland is the only stadium where football and baseball are played, and the Coliseum sucks. The city needed to sink money into it a long time ago. I think it’s about time that Sin City gets a professional franchise, and while I think an NBA franchise would work better there, I think the NFL would be the next best thing. Baseball would never work in Las Vegas because there are too many dates. Football is perfect.
Some naysayers think that Las Vegas isn’t a big enough area to have a pro franchise. I disagree. I see people coming from Arizona, Los Angeles, northern Nevada and even the Bay Area. Most of the people in Vegas are transplants and may already have a favorite team, but if there were a local team in Vegas, I think it would draw.
I know that I would make a weekend trip or two down to Vegas if the Raiders were there, and I know several Raiders fans in northern Nevada would do the same.
The question is will Las Vegas deliver, and will owner Mark Davis REALLY try to move the team? If he’s truly trying to stay in Oakland, I have no issue with that. If he goes anywhere else, I hope it’s Las Vegas.
In the past, major sports frowned on potential Las Vegas franchises because of the betting issues. From what I understand if there is a pro team in Las Vegas you couldn’t place a bet on that team.
I hope that attitude had changed, and I hope the NFL and officials in Las Vegas will keep an open mind to a potential move by the Raiders.