Someone with the Raiders who worked closely with Al Davis once opined, “Al Davis is the only man I know who truly would cut off his nose to spite his face.”
Al became more and more unreasonable in his later years, and was prone to decisions that would be hurtful to himself and the organization while attempting to exact some sort of revenge or retribution over slights both real and imagined.
I’m seeing at least a little of that in the decision of Mark Davis to close Allegiant Stadium to all fans rather than open it for some of them when the 2020 season starts amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
Given Al Davis’ declining health until his death in 2011 and attempts to chase his own Hall of Fame legacy, his actions were somewhat understandable. And with Mark Davis’ devotion to his beloved “Raider Nation” — it’s real, by the way — the decision to shut out season ticket holders in 2020 can be seen as honorable from a health and safety perspective as well as being fair to fans who would have attended albeit in limited fashion.
But just because it’s honorable doesn’t mean it’s practical, nor in the in the best interests of either the season-ticket holders or the organization provided experts believe a smaller crowd can be accommodated safely.
Let’s assume that Clark County health officials would be OK with the New England Patriots plan of allowing 20 percent capacity and putting fans in socially distant blocks with a facemask requirement. Twenty percent capacity would be in the 13,000 range.
When Davis moved the team to Las Vegas, he never envisioned a crowd smaller than a Coliseum exhibition game. The Vegas opener was going to be his crowning achievement. Nobody thought Davis could pull it off any more than getting Jon Gruden back on the sideline.
As much as Al Davis accomplished, the stadium issue dogged him from Oakland to Los Angeles and back, and neither the Raiders nor the municipalities involved covered themselves in glory.
So it’s natural for Mark Davis to want it all. The Monday night home opener on Sept. 21 against the Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints had all the makings of a raucous party with a full house, pomp and circumstance and a full-throated celebration for the new Raiders.
Davis wants it so bad he’ll serve the interests of none of his fans instead of giving them a scaled-down version of the future they helped finance.
In an interview with The Athletic, Davis talked about the very real dilemma of shutting out fans who had paid for seats in the form of personal seat licenses. Better to just keep them all out for the sake of fairness.
But life, as well as pandemics, aren’t fair.
If the Raiders allowed 13,000 fans per game, that’s 104,000 fans that would see them play in their new stadium. It’s not 520,000, which would be eight games at full capacity, but it’s not zero, either.
It would give the Raiders at least something of a home fan base on game day, and if other teams are going to have fans in the stands, there’s at least a shred of competitive advantage there for the opposition.
And given that the Raiders average ticket price according to SeatGeek is $622, recouping 20 percent of gate receipts isn’t exactly chump change.
Why not hold a lottery, with season-ticket holders guaranteed at least one game or maybe two if they’re lucky? It’s not as if Las Vegas is averse to a roll of the dice provided it’s not gambling with the health of its citizens. Fans may or may not get the exact seat they paid for, but it’s better than no seat at all. Require suite-holders to adhere to social distancing. Pass out Raiders face masks to everyone. Be a model for responsible re-opening.
Davis said via text message there were no plans “at this time” to revisit the no fans policy should the coronavirus curve flatten in the future for potential home games in front of fans in the second half of the season or should the Raiders make the playoffs.
Whether the Raiders have fans in 2020 or not, it’s unlikely they’ll see a full house at Allegiant Stadium until 2021 at the earliest.
A crowd of 13,000 is far from ideal, but it beats the alternative.
Farewell, class of 2017
And the last man standing is David Sharpe.
When linebacker Marquel Lee was waived/injured Monday, it meant every member of the draft class of 2017 had been traded or cut.
That includes Sharpe, who was cut but brought back and is in competition to be a backup at both offensive tackle spots.
To review:
— Gareon Conley (first round) was traded to Houston last year for the Texans’ third round pick (No. 91).
— Safety Obi Melfonwu (second round) was cut.
— Defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes (third round) was cut.
— Sharpe (fourth round) was cut but later re-signed.
— Lee (fifth round), whose days were numbered when the Raiders signed Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski, was cut.
— Trayvon Hester, Jylan Ware and Elijah Hood (all seventh round) were cut.
Meanwhile, G.M. Mike Mayock has been aboard a little over a year and only 21 of 80 players were here before he arrived.
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