Getty Deion Sanders & Troy Aikman.
The NFL is coming to Las Vegas and bringing the Raiders with them. Despite being one of the entertainment capitals of the world, Las Vegas didn’t get into the professional sports business until recently. The Vegas Golden Knights of the NHL have proven to be a success and with one of the most popular football teams in the world coming, the sports world is going to be keeping an eye on Sin City.
Though the Super Bowl is in Miami this year, a lot of talk has surrounded the Raiders and Las Vegas. FOX Sports analyst and Dallas Cowboys legend Troy Aikman had some big praise for the silver and black.
“I think it’s going to be awesome,” Aikman said on Wednesday. “I think the Raiders are an up-and-coming team that really made some great strides this year. I like what Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden are doing, so I think they hit Vegas at probably the right time. There’s a little bit of excitement about that team and it should be fun. I’m hopeful we’ll get to call a game there.”
The Raiders were short of the playoffs in 2019, but not many expected them to stay in the race until the final week of the season. There’s no doubt they’ll be a hot pick to make the playoffs in 2020.
Deion Sanders Believes Raiders Are Improving
In Jon Gruden’s first season back with the Raiders, it looked like the experiment was going to be a disaster. The 2018 version of the team struggled in all facets and they had little in the way of exciting young talent. 2019 was a completely different look for the team and NFL legend Deion Sanders think the Raiders are getting better and better.
“You could take the Raiders to China, they still gonna be the Raiders,” Sanders said. “You can change the name, you can change everything, they still the Raiders… They’re improving. They got some draft choices that are paying dividends for them… I think they’re on an upward climb.”
The Raiders have one of the biggest brands in the NFL, so even though they are leaving Oakland, they’re still going to have a loyal fan base in Las Vegas. Fielding a winner will do a lot to help that.
“They’re on an upward climb.”
@DeionSanders has some high expectations for next season 🗣️
Follow the Heavy Las Vegas Raiders page for the latest breaking news, rumors and content!
Las Vegas Is Going to Be ‘Incredible’
Las Vegas is going to open a number of new opportunities for the NFL. People involved with the league know this and there’s excitement brewing.
“I am so excited for the Las Vegas Raiders,” said veteran NFL reporter Erin Andrews. “When obviously we found out the NFL was going to Vegas, I was like, ‘This is going to be incredible and how many games are we going to get to do there?’ It’s just going to be a blast.”
The only thing that’s been holding the Raiders back as of late is their inability to field a consistent winner and their aging Coliseum in Oakland. Now that they’re going to have a shiny new stadium and it looks like the team is ready to start winning, things could get really big for Mark Davis and the Raiders.
READ NEXT: Former NFL QB Predicts Tom Brady to Land With the Raiders