LOS ANGELES – The Raiders have long been considered a candidate to relocate back to Los Angeles, and Tuesday new owner Mark Davis officially put them in play.
Davis, son of late owner Al Davis, said it’s essential that the Raiders get a new stadium and that the organization has had conversations with L.A. stadium groups.
“The timetable is yesterday. So that’s where it is. We’ve got to get a stadium. We’ve got to get that done,” Davis said Tuesday at a news conference to introduce Reggie McKenzie as Raiders general manager.
“It’s such a competitive business. It really is competitive. We can’t compete for a lot of the players that other teams can, at times.”
Davis said Raiders Chief Executive Amy Trask has had discussions with the San Francisco 49ers about sharing a stadium in Santa Clara. He also said he has no intention of selling the team.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has said there will be no relocations to Los Angeles in 2012, but he hasn’t ruled out one after that.
The Raiders played in L.A. from 1982 to 1994, but Davis said he has yet to receive an offer he likes.
“We’re trying to get something done up here, but if we can’t, we’ve got to get something done somewhere because we need to be able to compete,” he said. “And that’s where it’s at.”
