Boycott the Raiders? Don’t be so sure
As the Raiders leave, while staying:
You can’t feel it now. The springtime air is filled with rage and rebellion, as chilly as the northwest winds, as the Raiders plan to leave soulful, grassroots Oakland for a domed stadium in fake-town Las Vegas.
But the seasons change. The winds grow pleasant in autumn, and football is in the air. Of all the fan bases in America, none is more devoted to game day — at the stadium — than Oakland’s. It’s a festival of tailgating, face-painting and raw passion that dates back decades. And this year’s Raiders lineup rates with the NFL’s best, a Super Bowl well within reach.
If you’ve given up your season tickets and sworn off the franchise forever, that’s a fine and noble stance. For others, especially those who dream of Sundays through a taxing work week, boycotting won’t be so easy. How long can you hold out before feeling that overwhelming desire to see your team in person? Put it this way: The Coliseum won’t be a ghost town this season. For many of the long-devoted, the scene is too intoxicating.
The A’s should make it clear, within the next few months, whether they’re targeting the Coliseum site for their new stadium. Then we can all push for the Raiders setting up temporary camp in Levi’s Stadium, San Antonio, wherever, for the 2018 and ’19 seasons. Tear down the decrepit Coliseum. Break ground on the ultra-cool ballpark. Bring the A’s future into clear view (as they share AT&T with the Giants).
Draymond Green says “there ain’t no fan base” like the Raiders’, and he wouldn’t spend a dime on the team. What if Green were simply a fan of the Warriors, an Oakland resident bound to the team for years. Would he attend games in San Francisco?
Grim duty for Raiders players and their wives and kids: Being pestered daily about Las Vegas, and about playing in a soon-to-be-abandoned town.
You can’t have fans attending NFL games and drifting off to slot machines. Come 2020, the Raiders’ stadium will be about the only Vegas setting without gambling.