Burning questions as Raiders depart
Burning questions (hope this isn’t a Spare the Air day) ... Q: What’s that smell wafting from Phoenix?
Fear. Roger Goodell went to painful lengths Monday to say how haaaard the NFL worked to keep the Raiders in Oakland. Mark Davis said the same. Oh, how hard they worked! Gosh.
Their fear is that Oakland fans will desert the team, bringing three seasons of embarrassment and lost revenue. Goodell and Davis desperately need Oakland fans to forgive and forget, and to make Las Vegas their new home away from home, ASAP.
So search your hearts, Raiders fans. Like Goodell and Davis searched theirs. Q: Sports Illustrated’s analysts say Colin Kaepernick can’t get a job as an NFL backup QB because he’s a scrambler, and teams need their two QBs — starter and backup — to have similar styles. Bullcorn?
Straight up. Having a starter and backup with contrasting styles is a big problem — for opposing teams. Who backed up Kaepernick when the 49ers were a Super Bowl team? Alex Smith. Who backed up Joe Montana? There are a million examples of why this theory is bogus.
NFL teams simply fear fan backlash — and lost revenue — if they sign Kaepernick. As Deep Throat once said, “Follow the money.” Q: The Chronicle’s Bruce Jenkins wants the NBA to junk its preseason games to make the regular-season schedule less grinding on players. Realistic?
I love Jenks’ idealism, but he overlooks one small factor: money.
The Warriors will play two exhibition games in China next preseason. That’s China, not China Basin. The NBA spells China “Cha-ching.”
Owners make big money on practice games. So do the players. In terms of prepping for the season, those exhibition games are as useless as turn signals on sneakers, but they rake in cash.
Same deal in the NFL and MLB. The issue comes up for a vote every year at the owners’ meetings. “Raise your hand if you want less money.” Q: If Oakland fans boycott the Raiders, where can the team play for the next three seasons?
Two words: Los Raiders. Follow el dinero.