Since the Raiders don’t seem to have many reasonable options, it appears that reasonable minds have been able to set aside differences.
According to Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Raiders continue to talk about playing one more year in Oakland, and Coliseum Authority executive director Scott McKibben expressed hope that a deal could be struck for the team to play there another year.
“I am cautiously optimistic that I believe that we will get a deal done, yes,” McKibben said.
McKibben said he didn’t think a deal would be reached before next week, but said he planned to talk to Raiders president Marc Badain about scheduling more talks.
The Raiders have few other options — I mean, unless you take Tucson and Birmingham seriously which you probably shouldn’t. But pride was a factor as well, especially after the local government sued the team for leaving for Las Vegas, where the stadium won’t be ready until 2020.
A decision to continue negotiations is a good sign things are progressing. More local government approvals would be required, but it appears things are moving in a positive direction.
“The next step for me is I will get back to the Raiders, and I will discuss with Marc what exactly we discussed [in closed session],” McKibben said. “Like any other deal or negotiation, we will hammer down to the shorthairs. If we reach a complete and full agreement, then we’ll move forward, do a contract, and at that time, we would have a meeting, . . . where we call people back for a formal approval.”
The Raiders planned to continue to practice in Alameda at the team headquarters, which seemed to make playing nearby the most likely scenario.