Even in the offseason, the Las Vegas Raiders always seem to find a way to generate headlines. This time it’s not a player or a coach. Instead, it’s team owner Mark Davis making waves.
Despite having a brand new, state-of-the-art SoFi Stadium to play in, the Los Angeles Chargers can’t ever fill the building with their own fans. It’s no secret. Even though the Chargers play in one of the largest markets in the United States, Los Angeles averaged the 14th-fewest home fans when the Bolts played at SoFi, compared to the fourth-most fans when the Rams play at the same exact venue in 2022.
This week, the NFL team owners are voting on whether to allow Amazon’s Thursday Night Football games to be flexed in an attempt to improve the matchups delivered to fans in primetime. Naturally, some owners favor allowing more scheduling flexibility, but not everyone is on board.
Las Vegas Raiders team owner Mark Davis found a colorful way to chime in on the matter, but he couldn’t resist taking a shot at his AFC West Divisional rival Los Angeles Chargers and their fanbase in the process.
“If you have a Raiders-Chargers game in Las Vegas scheduled for a Thursday and all of the fans driving from Los Angeles – the Raiders fans and all three Chargers fans – buy their tickets and book their hotels, how in the hell do you schedule it and now say, ‘Sorry, it’s now on Sunday?’ How in the hell do you do that?”
Las Vegas Raiders team owner Mark Davis on TNF flex scheduling, and Los Angeles Chargers
All three Chargers fans? Wow. While the Chargers may struggle to fill their stadium, the Raiders were actually worse in that regard, with the second-fewest home fans in the NFL a season ago.
Of course, we don’t know how many fans in attendance at Chargers or Raiders games actually root for the home team instead of a fanbase that travels well, so Davis’s joke still holds up pretty well, unless, of course, you’re one of the three fans who root for the Chargers.
Related: NFL insider suggests Las Vegas Raiders could trade Davante Adams this summer