The NFL has done all it can to provide continuity in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, holding its draft, schedule release and off-season as scheduled although not without major tweaks because of shelter-in-place restrictions.
The Raiders have been more under the radar than most. Coach Jon Gruden has let general manager Mike Mayock do almost all the talking save for a couple of brief responses on the club web site and one syndicated radio appearence with a club employee.
Although draft picks were made available via conference call after being selected, free agent signings have been simply listed as transactions on Raiders.com without press releases or press conferences.
With relative silence as a backdrop, here’s an attempt to answer some questions as to how the Raiders are going about their virtual offseason:
What are the Raiders doing now?
The Raiders are in to their third week of their voluntary virtual offseason which consistents of teleconference meetings between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. Monday through Thursday. Players log in for a team session and then are dispatched to smaller gatherings with their position groups with the appropriate position coaches.
Work is done on tablet computers, which have information about the systems of offense and defense including video of plays. Players are quizzed and can ask questions, much the same as a regular position group meeting.
What about the rookies?
Rookies had a “virtual” minicamp May 1-3 in place of their usual on-field camp. They weren’t allowed to participate with the full group until this week and on Wednesday had a session of media training as part of their player engagement program.
What are players missing that they normally would be doing at this point of the off-season?
All on-field activities. Although at this point rules wouldn’t have allowed any offense vs. defense or padded practicing, in normal years players would have been able to work on the field with their offensive or defensive unit and in position groups. There has been little in the way of face-to-face relationships other than players that live near each other who have managed to get in some work together.
In other words, the Raiders are like most everyone else.
“It’s not unlike kindergarten teachers and the third grade teachers and everyone around the coutnry trying to put their best foot forward and teach people from home,” Mayock said at the conclusion of the draft. “That’s what I stress with all the veterans and to every single rookie we drafted. Once we get them integrated into our virtual program, we expect 100 percent attention. They better be ready to hit the ground running whenever we’re allowed to.”
When might that occur?
The NFL on Wednesday announced that the virtual off-season would continue through May 29 for all teams. The Raiders organized team activity practice sessions were scheduled for the weeks of May 26, June 2 and June 9. The first one will be virtual, and the other two could be as well.
Who is presently at the club facility in Alameda?
Athletic trainers and medical staff are there to work with players coming back from surgery or major injury. There is an information technology presence in Alameda and Las Vegas and a smaller security detail. Everyone else — players, coaches, media relations, front office — is working remotely as per NFL shelter in place guidelines.
Meanwhile, the NFL provided an update for teams today on their virtual offseason, extending them another few weeks through May 29. Here is the memo: pic.twitter.com/Vy8Khxu1Od
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 13, 2020
What is the likelihood of the Raiders being able to have their training camp in Napa in late July as scheduled?
The Napa Valley Marriott, which has housed the Raiders since 1996, is closed. A representative said the tentative plan is for the hotel to open on June 1 and that they are “hopeful” the Raiders will be there as planned in July.
What if restrictions put in place by California Gov. Gavin Newsom make that impossible?
The likely option will be for the Raiders to train at their new facility in Henderson, Nevada, if cleared in their new home state The club had already tentatively scheduled their full-squad mandatory minicamp at the site from June 16-18, and that remains in play as well.
If California restrictions are more severe than Nevada, what is the effect on the Raiders?
Their new home, Allegiant Stadium, could begin the year as the home site for the Rams and Chargers if those franchises aren’t allowed to start the season at SoFI Stadium, the home site for both teams.Is there any way to know how a lost off-season would impact NFL teams?
If NFL teams can start training camp on time, they’d still be better off than in 2011 if you are of the belief that virtual practices are better than nothing at all. That year, an 18-week lockout from March 11 to July 25 kept players away from their teams from March 11 to July 25 until a collective bargaining agreement was reached. Some players organized workouts with teammates on their own to get ready during that time. There really wasn’t anything dramatic about the way the season went that suggested the loss of the off-season was a big problem. Teams with first-year head coaches went 40-40, including the 49ers going 13-3 under Jim Harbaugh and the Raiders 8-8 under Hue Jackson. A rookie quarterback (Cam Newton) was the NFL Rookie of the Year.
What if shelter-in-place restrictions make it impossible for training camp and the regular season to start on time?
Then it’s uncharted territory, to be determined at the appropriate time with cooperation between managemenet and the NFL player’s association to work out an abbreviated regular-season and a shorter training camp.
