The Raiders are refusing to place special gold marks on the 50-yard line at O.co Coliseum for '15 home games. "The Raiders have asked us not to do that," said Chris Wright, AEG Facilities VP and the Coliseum's GM. AEG runs the stadium shared by the Raiders and the A's. Raiders officials did not provide AEG officials with further explanation and the Raiders did not return emails and phone calls for comment. The gold 50 marks are a key visual piece of the NFL's season-long celebration of Super Bowl 50, to be held Feb. 7 at Levi's Stadium, home of the 49ers. The NFL in March announced every game this season would carry the gold number 50 on the field as part of its "On the Fifty" celebration. The league's 30 other stadiums have complied with the initiative. NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy said the lack of gold marks for the Raiders' first two home games are the result of the A's still playing baseball at the Coliseum. McCarthy said gold marks would be put down after their season ended. But Wright said, "It has nothing to do with baseball. The last six home baseball games are through this weekend, and there will be no gold marks for the rest of the Raiders' regular season" (Don Muret, Staff Writer).
THE GOLD SHUSH: CBSSPORTS.com's John Breech wrote the likely reason the Raiders "won't paint their 50s gold is because the Raiders hate the 49ers and one of the Niners' team colors is gold." Breech: "That being said, if I'm the Raiders and I'm looking for either new stadium money from the NFL or permission to move to L.A., I'm probably doing whatever the league asks" (CBSSPORTS.com, 9/22). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio wrote the move possibly is a "great big eff you to a league that arguably isn't doing all that much to help the Raiders find a solution to its longstanding stadium woes" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 9/22). But CSNBAYAREA.com's Ray Ratto wrote it "isn't any kind of middle finger to the league because Mark Davis needs the other owners to like him enough to let him move the team" to L.A. Ratto: "It's just the Raiders being the Raiders" (CSNBAYAREA.com, 9/22).
