LAS VEGAS – The now 2-12 Las Vegas Raiders have gotten used to the sight of opposing fans filling out Allegiant Stadium. While Falcons’ faithful still firmly outnumbered Raiders fans in attendance, more seats sat empty for the Raiders’ 15-9 loss on Monday night than I’ve ever seen for a regular season game at the ‘Death Star’.
It was a damning reality for Mark Davis and company in the Silver and Black’s lone primetime showcase at home this season.
The product on the field has long been worthy of apprehension and Monday’s loss wasn’t a deviation from that norm. What it did make apparent is the fact that the Raiders won’t be able to coast on visiting fan support in Las Vegas for much longer if they don’t give Raider Nation a reason to make the trip from its spiritual base in Southern California.
That’s something the front office needs to think long and hard about while pondering their April draft selection. A quarterback is a necessity, but if selling tickets and establishing Vegas as a true base for Raider Nation is actually a priority, then there’s only one marquee name at the position the Raiders should be pushing for.
You can probably pick up what I’m putting down at this point, but that name begins with Shedeur and ends with Sanders. Hell, if they were lucky enough, maybe Shedeur could convince Deion to leave his post at Colorado to take what is likely to soon be a vacant Raiders’ head coaching position.
It helps that they get closer and closer to that reality with each loss. It also helps that Davis committed to giving minority owner Tom Brady the deciding say in the team's quarterback decision this offseason. Brady has served as the younger Sanders’ mentor in his rise as a collegiate quarterback.
If there is any “Brady-coded” player available in the 2025 NFL Draft, it would surely be Sanders.
Sanders has made it clear via his social media channels that he is warm to the idea of starting his career under Brady’s tutelage in Las Vegas. We all saw that Instagram story he posted as he passed Allegiant Stadium by car a few weeks ago. He even spent his bye week during the regular season taking in a Raiders game at his potential future home.
The lone obstacle between the Raiders and their desired quarterback just so happens to be the only team that had a one-up on Brady during his playing career. According to ESPN Stats & Info, the Giants (also 2-12) currently hold the rights to the top pick as strength of schedule determines the tiebreak, and their need of a quarterback certainly would certainly make Sanders a prime candidate.
However, should both teams lose out, Tankathon.com projects that the Raiders would actually receive the top pick with a .538 SOS compared to the Giants at .550.
Regardless, Deion took to X to publicly deny rumors that Shedeur would pull an “Eli” or an “Elway” and refuse to play for the Giants if they selected him. Thus, the Raiders need the SOS equation to continue to bend in their favor, or they need to start considering a trade into the top overall draft slot.
As important as landing a cornerstone talent at quarterback is for the future of the Raiders’ franchise, it's equally as important that the team finds its face in the form of a quarterback. It needs that face, that star, to establish itself further in a Las Vegas market that isn’t short on marquee billings.
Maxx Crosby is an excellent ambassador for the Raiders, but there was a different kind of buy-in with Las Vegans when it came to Derek Carr. You feel a different kind of energy as a fan when you know you have a name-brand quarterback who can win games.
With Sanders, you get top-pick talent and you also get the enigma surrounding him. You get the personality that is Coach Prime, even if he is just playing a more dignified Lavar Ball role. There’s nothing quite like the Caitlin Clark effect we’ve seen take over women’s hoops but the Prime effect that took over college football is objectively the closest thing.
In a city where even the brightest stars can be dimmed by Strip’s fluorescent lights, it’s even more vital to find a player that truly resonates Vegas’ trademark flash. Few players in recent memory check those boxes like Shedeur Sanders does.
He’s the only right answer to solve what could very quickly become a daunting attendance problem.
