3 things Raiders must do to avoid embarrassment around Vegas move
The NFL's 32 owners voted overwhelmingly Monday to approve the Raiders' proposed move to Las Vegas.
It's a sad end to the team's time in Oakland, but also the beginning of an exciting new era for the team and league.
But it's not necessarily a slam dunk. To ensure the move is a success, the Raiders must do three things:
Keep the peace in Oakland
The Raiders are going to the desert, but not quite yet. The stadium in Sin City won't be ready until 2019, which means the Raiders will remain in Oakland as a lame duck for two more seasons.
It's kind of like getting dumped by your girlfriend, but then begging her to still go to prom together "as friends." It's not a good idea.
Weeks after learning the Browns would relocate to Baltimore after the 1995 season, fans tore seats out of Municipal Stadium in the team's final game in Cleveland. With years, not weeks, to stew on the news that the Raiders will leave, things could get very ugly in the Black Hole.
Raiders games in Oakland already have a reputation for violence in the stands. How will fans behave knowing that their beloved team - just as it shows signs of being a contender after years of dismal play - is no longer theirs?
And even if peace is maintained, why would any fans in Oakland pay to attend games? Why should fans cheer the team rather than loudly boo owner Mark Davis at every opportunity?
Perhaps the best-case scenario for the Raiders is playing out their time in Oakland in a half-full stadium full of fans too sad to be angry. That's not exactly the kind of home-field advantage Derek Carr and Co. deserve as they enter a Super Bowl window.
Convince fans in Las Vegas to be patient
Building a dedicated fan base in a city that on any given day has almost as many tourists as permanent residents was never going to be easy, but the timeline the Raiders have set out for themselves will make things particularly difficult.
By announcing the move now but remaining in Oakland for two more seasons, the Raiders could miss the opportunity to capitalize on the hype about their move. There are no Las Vegas Raiders tickets to sell yet, and there won't be for a while.
By the time the Raiders roll into town, they could feel like old news. There will already be pro sports in the city (the NHL's Vegas Golden Knights will begin play this fall), so some of that novelty will have worn off.
The Raiders can mitigate some of these issues by accelerating their move to Las Vegas in creative ways, like by holding training camp in the area and perhaps even playing some preseason or regular-season games in Sam Boyd Stadium, home of UNLV, before 2019.
Navigate the fine line with the betting industry
The NFL has long taken a strong public stance in opposition to sports betting, but the Raiders getting approval to relocate to the gambling capital of the world clearly indicates owners have softened that position.
That doesn't mean the Raiders are in the clear, however, and any reports about casinos (or anyone associated with the gambling industry) earning influence within the Raiders' organization could be bad news in the NFL's eyes.
Mark Davis doesn't exactly have a reputation as the NFL's most shrewd owner, and it's not hard to imagine him being manipulated by unscrupulous Las Vegas moguls seeking to profit off the Raiders.
A betting scandal would be disastrous for the NFL, and great care must be taken to ensure it doesn't happen.