Raiders notebook: Former star Charles Woodson sees bright future for team ... in Las Vegas
It was a disastrous ending for the Raiders in Oakland.
The Raiders (6-8) suffered a 20-16 loss Sunday to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the last game ever in RingCentral Coliseum.
“We’re all disappointed,” former Raiders star Charles Woodson said. “I know the players are disappointed ... it’s disappointing not to come out on top. It’s a game we felt like we had it under wraps, but it didn’t come out the way we wanted it to.”
Derek Carr scrambled for a 12-yard run to the Jacksonville 31 when he appeared to slide in bounds. The referee, however, ruled him out of bounds.
And a delay of game was called and Jacksonville didn’t have to use a timeout.
Several plays later, Tyrell Williams dropped a pass from Carr.
Daniel Carlson lined up for two field goals (penalty called for running into the kicker) and he missed on a 45-yard field goal that would have put the Raiders up 19-3.
Jacksonville then marched down the field and got a winning touchdown.
Afterward, fans threw debris onto the field and Derek Carr greeted the Black Hole and was met with boos. A few fans rushed the field but didn’t get far.
Despite the collapse, Woodson sees an upside in the Raiders as they will move to Las Vegas in 2020 and will play at Allegiant Stadium.
“It’s a young team and they’re going to keep fighting and keep getting better,” said Woodson, who lit the Al Davis Memorial Torch before the game. “I’m looking forward to seeing their progress throughout the years.
“The time is upon us. There is no turning back now. There is a stadium that is almost ready to move into pretty soon and it is what it is. It’s a different journey and you start somewhere and you potentially finish somewhere else. I know everybody is excited about having a new stadium. It’s time. I know a lot of people, myself included, wished it could’ve been done here, but circumstances are what they are.”
Fans celebrate one last time in Oakland
The Black Hole went out in style Sunday. They had a big party with tacos, a DJ and much more.
The Knights of the Shield Booster Club, League of Bandits and Bobby Salazar’s teamed up with Marshawn Lynch in C Lot by serving “Beastmode Burgers” as long as they lasted.
During the season, fans traveled to Oakland from the East Coast, Midwest and New Mexico, among other places, to enjoy an Oakland tailgate. One fan made a special memory before the Dec. 8 game against the Tennessee Titans: Franke Castro surprised his girlfriend Laura Sigala by proposing to her in front of fans.
She was greeted with red roses before he popped the question.
What he didn’t know is that others would send him videos of the proposal.
“They were like, ‘Hey, I was there.’ People were recognizing me inside the stadium, offering congratulations. Raider fans are truly the best fans in sports. It’s more like a family with Raider fans. I’m glad our family, friends and our three kids got to witness that.”
Iggy Kruszewski of Alamogordo, New Mexico, brought his family for their first Raiders experience in Oakland on Nov. 17.
“We seen them before in Phoenix when they played the Cardinals,” he said. “We just had to get this off the bucket list before we move to Vegas.”
This story was originally published December 16, 2019 at 12:32 PM.
