Friday’s NFL: Owner Mark Davis welcomes Raiders to their new Vegas home

Detroit News

Las Vegas — Mark Davis sat alone on a metal bench at the 35-yard line inside Allegiant Stadium a little more than an hour before the Las Vegas Raiders took the field Friday.

Sitting to his left high over the north end zone in front of a glass wall that reveals the Luxor and Mandalay Bay casinos was the 95-foot torch honoring his late father, Al Davis.

His thoughts during those moments of quiet reflection remained unknown. His thoughts on what the team can accomplish in their new home were made clear once the players were gathered around.

“Welcome to the Death Star, where our opponents’ dreams come to die,” Davis said as he addressed the players from the base of the torch while being broadcast on three enormous video boards. “My father always said that the greatness of the Raiders is in its future. Well, today that future really starts. This magnificent stadium was built on the backs of thousands of players, coaches, administrators, and fans, who for the past 60 years have proudly worn the Silver and Black. This is our field of dreams. This is our house.

“This stadium’s personality will be defined by you. You are the Raiders. There’ll be many personal accomplishments out here on this field. Someone on this field today will make the first tackle. Somebody will score the first touchdown. And somebody will make the first interception. But most importantly, it’s what we do as a team.”

The Raiders then broke in their new home with a scrimmage for which they donned full game uniforms and pads.

“In absence of the preseason, it’s nice the players get a chance to come in here and see what they’ll get to play in this season,” Raiders President Marc Badain said. “We’re very proud of what we have here.”

The players went through their typical drills, stations scattered about the field, which currently only has yard lines, hash marks and numbers painted on it, still awaiting the Raiders shield at midfield.

Missing was the baseball diamond the Raiders became accustomed to playing on at the Oakland Coliseum.

“It’s very impressive, the yard-keepers for the field have done a great job,” said fifth-year running back Jalen Richard. “It’s really fast, it’s comfortable. I know a couple of guys thought it was going to be artificial turf, but it turned out to be real grass. We’re real excited for this.”

And it was Nevin Lawson registering the first tackle when he stopped Lynn Bowden Jr. on the opening kickoff, which was duplicated with another right afterward. Rico Gafford promptly took the second one to the house, ignoring whistles blowing the play dead once he darted past his teammates, giving him the first unofficial touchdown inside Allegiant.

Moments later, Isaiah Johnson stepped in front of rookie Henry Ruggs III to pick off a pass from quarterback Derek Carr.

“I haven’t seen a stadium that looks like this ever,” Richard said. “It’s blacked out. It looks like a nice limousine or a blacked out H2 Hummer. It just looks nice and big and aggressive. And then you get inside and it’s just beautiful. I definitely won’t take none of this for granted.”

The Raiders were hoping to make as big a splash as the NHL’s Golden Knights did just up Dean Martin Drive at T-Mobile Arena when they made their debut in 2017, but because of the coronavirus pandemic the Raiders will play home games without fans. Their home opener is scheduled for Sept. 21 against the New Orleans Saints on “Monday Night Football.”

Davis has said that if the fans aren’t allowed in the building, he won’t be attending games either. But it’s clear what his expectations are, even during such a strange season.

“I’ll leave you with three words: Just win baby,” he told the players. “Welcome home.”

Feeling the heat

New Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar said he understands he could still be punished by the NFL even after armed robbery charges against him in Florida were dropped.

Dunbar declined to speak in detail about what led to him being arrested and charged in Broward County, Florida. He said the ongoing case against New York Giants defensive back DeAndre Baker, who was formally charged with four counts of robbery with a firearm in the same incident, prevents him from speaking at length about what happened in May.

Prosecutors announced the charges against Baker earlier this month while also saying Dunbar would not be prosecuted due to insufficient evidence.

“I can’t really comment on that situation with the ongoing case still going on,” Dunbar said via video conference. “So I can’t really speak on what happened, but the truth will eventually come out.”

According to an arrest warrant, Baker and Dunbar were attending a cookout in Miramar, Florida, when a fight broke out and Baker pulled out a handgun. Baker and other men then began robbing people of thousands of dollars, watches and other valuables, witnesses told investigators.

Baker, who is accused of stealing cash and watches from four men, faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in state prison if he is convicted.

While declining to talk in-depth about his arrest, Dunbar did provide some details. He said he never met the people who accused him and Baker until the day before the incident. Dunbar said following his arrest, he was depressed and knew a conviction could bring a life sentence.

Dunbar said he felt he had no issues with his reputation prior to the arrest.

“I felt like before that situation it spoke for itself. Never been to jail, never been in trouble. Never came into an encounter with police for doing anything illegal,” Dunbar said. “Now all of a sudden when I make it this far, where everything I grew up wanting, I just put it out there on the line for something silly like that. People are going to believe what they want but know that I know who I am and what I stand for. That’s all that matters to me.”

He also acknowledged some form of punishment from the league could still be pending. “There’s definitely a possibility. … So, who knows. I’m not saying it’s going to happen or it’s not going to happen,” Dunbar said.

Dunbar was cleared to begin practicing with the Seahawks last weekend after he was removed from the commissioner’s exempt list and went through COVID-19 intake testing. It was his first time in Seattle following his offseason trade from Washington to the Seahawks.

Extra points

Jacksonville Jaguars defensive lineman Josh Mauro has been suspended without pay for the first five games of the regular season for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.

… Second-year pro QB Jarrett Stidham was limited at practice for the first time since the Patriots began the padded portion of training camp.

… The NFL hired Jonathan Beane as senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer.

… Buffalo Bills cornerback Josh Norman is out indefinitely after hurting his left hamstring in practice

Articles You May Like

Giants agree to contracts with two free agents, including a fan favorite
Detroit Lions re-sign veteran quarterback
Lions get an expanded den footprint with the NFL’s Global Markets Program
Takeaways from Daniel Jeremiah’s latest mock draft
Cam Sutton was at Lions facility when his arrest warrant went public

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *