The Oakland Raiders are in the process of becoming the Las Vegas Raiders as when they take the field for their first home game in 2020, it will be at the brand-new Allegiant Stadium just off The Strip.
With the practice facility and stadium not yet completed though, the Raiders are still conducting all of their offseason business in California.
The original plan was to conduct training camp in Napa, Calif., which they have done for years, and then complete the move to Las Vegas at the start of the preseason. It appears the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has forced the organization to rethink those plans, however.
According to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Raiders are now considering moving training camp to their new practice facility in Henderson:
The Raiders’ arrival in Las Vegas could come sooner than anticipated.
The team is seriously considering moving its training camp from Napa, California, to its new headquarters in Henderson. According to a person close to the team who was not authorized to speak on the record, training camp at the Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center is a viable option.
Training camp is still months away, so no official decisions need to be made at this time. With California having stricter laws than Nevada due to the pandemic though, it may make sense to conduct all future business at their new home just to be safe.
Recent reports indicate that coaches can begin returning to their offices in the coming weeks and there may be in-person minicamps shortly after, which wasn’t expected to be the case.
That would be great news for the Raiders though as they have a ton of new players on the roster that need to get up to speed with the playbook. While how the rest of the offseason will play out remains to be seen, all reports in recent days have been positive, which bodes well for the 2020 season starting on time.
