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Goodell on Raiders: 'We have not yet identified a viable solution' in Oakland

Lucy Nicholson / Reuters

The plea from Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf for the Raiders to remain in the Bay Area has drawn a response from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

The East Bay Times has obtained a letter Goodell sent to Schaaf after the mayor wrote the commissioner on Friday, detailing the city of Oakland's plan to build a new stadium for the Raiders.

Schaaf sent Goodell renderings for a $1.3-billion, 55,000-seat stadium that would be built on the current grounds of the Oakland Coliseum. Goodell, however, believes the plan is not "clear and specific, actionable in a reasonable time frame, and free of major contingencies."

"We have been prepared for nearly two years to work on finding a solution based on access to land at a certain cost, without constraints on the location of the stadium or timing of construction, and clarity on the overall development," Goodell wrote, according to David DeBolt of the East Bay Times.

Goodell added that the lack of certainty on how the project would be developed and the participation of money-management firm Fortress Investment Group are also concerns. Another major hang-up is the status of the MLB's Oakland Athletics who also play at the Oakland Coliseum.

"Despite all of these efforts, ours and yours, we have not yet identified a viable solution," Goodell wrote. "It is disappointing to me and our clubs to have come to that conclusion."

Those must be tough words to read for Raiders fans opposed to seeing the team transplant to Las Vegas.

Members of Raider Nation held a rally at the Oakland Coliseum on Saturday, just hours before the league's owners are set to vote on the team's proposed move to Las Vegas.

Schaaf spoke at the rally and implored Raiders officials to return to the negotiating table.

"The land deal is as firm and as solid as it possibly can be without the Raiders at the table," Schaff said, according to Kimberly Veklerov of the San Francisco Chronicle. "That is all we're asking of the NFL. Recognize your home market, recognize we have a viable plan, get the Raiders back to the table with us and forget the temptations of Sin City."

- With h/t to Pro Football Talk

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