The Raiders Won't Paint the 50 Yard Line Gold Because the NFL Won't Help Them Move Out Of Their Dumpy Baseball Field Stadium
SBD - The Raiders have gone rogue again, refusing to place special gold marks on the 50-yard line at O.co Coliseum for ’15 home games. “The Raiders have asked us not to do that,” said Chris Wright, AEG Facilities VP and the Coliseum’s GM. AEG runs the stadium shared by the Raiders and the A’s. Raiders officials did not provide AEG officials with further explanation and the Raiders did not return emails and phone calls for comment. The gold 50 marks are a key visual piece of the NFL’s season-long celebration of Super Bowl 50, to be held Feb. 7 at Levi’s Stadium, home of the 49ers. The NFL in March announced every game this season would carry the gold number 50 on the field as part of its “On the Fifty” celebration. The league’s 30 other stadiums have complied with the initiative. NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy said the lack of gold marks for the Raiders’ first two home games are the result of the Athletics still playing baseball at the Coliseum. McCarthy said gold marks would be put down after their season ended. But Wright said, “It has nothing to do with baseball. The last six home baseball games are through this weekend, and there will be no gold marks for the rest of the Raiders’ regular season.”
PFT - While no reason has been provided the refusal to comply, Occam’s Razer suggests that the Raiders don’t want to acknowledge a Super Bowl that will be played down the road in Santa Clara, home of the 49ers. At one level, that’s because the two teams don’t get along. At another level, it’s because the 49ers had no interest in sharing their swanky new stadium with the Raiders. At yet another level, it’s possibly a great big eff you to a league that arguably isn’t doing all that much to help the Raiders find a solution to its longstanding stadium woes.
The NFL makes 90 trillion dollars a year (estimated) but the Raiders still play on a fucking baseball field. That’s insanity. They play on a fucking baseball field. As a comparison, the Atlanta Braves actually play baseball and they are about to move into their 2nd new stadium of the last 20 years. The Raiders play football and can’t get a place to call their own. I’m sure there are all sorts of political and tax-payer reasons, but it’s pure insanity they are snapping the ball where second base should be. This is the National Football League. Have some respect. Have some dignity. How is it possible they are still playing on a dirt field and the first row is basically in Hawaii?
On the other hand maybe the Raiders should never move to a new stadium. Raiders fans don’t belong in a shiny new building. It just wouldn’t be right. It’s like when they made the Eagles move to the Linc. They might never win a Super Bowl agai….errrr…a Super Bowl.