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By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
They practiced against each other on fields in Henderson this week. Today, the Raiders and Patriots suited up in team uniforms and went at it inside Allegiant Stadium.
The Raiders played a solid defensive game Friday and first-year head coach Josh McDaniels and his Las Vegas squad knocked off McDaniels’ former team, the New England Patriots, 23-6.
It gave the Raiders an unblemished 4-0 preseason record as Las Vegas preps for its season-opener in Los Angeles against the Chargers Sept. 11. The Raiders did not commit a turnover Friday, while recovering a fumble by the Patriots and also picking off two passes for a pair of interceptions.
Foe those curious about the stats for a preseason game, check these numbers out. The Raiders reported distributed tickets were 61,323.
Raiders starting quarterback, Derek Carr, did not play.
The Raiders’ natural turf field looked rather worn for the first preseason game against the Vikings and the natural grass didn’t look much better today. The Raiders will be getting new turf for the regular season.
It was ridiculously hot in Las Vegas for the Raiders tailgaters in the stadium lots. My car thermometer said it was 100 degrees in the shade.
So we ducked inside the domed, air conditioned stadium at 1:30PM.
The national anthem was being practiced and TV workers were putting gear into place.
The game’s opponent for the Raiders — the New England Patriots — must stir emotions for McDaniels.
He was a long time assistant coach/offensive coordinator under veteran Patriots coach Bill Belichick.
Raiders owner Mark Davis pays special attention to the Raiders alums and today some 300 former Raiders players were in the stadium.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how cool it was to have the alumni here. Where 300 guys that obviously built much of what we’re trying to uphold today, relative to the tradition and history that this organization exudes. To see all those guys back — I got a chance to speak to a few of them today before the game — it’s a great tribute to a great group of people that obviously are so deserving of the attention and recognition that they have, that they get from Raider Nation and our organization. — Raiders coach Josh McDaniels
Davis, who also owns the WNBA Las Vegas Aces, also instituted an player alum program for the Aces franchise, which spent time in San Antonio and Salt Lake City.
Davis was seen signing autographs and talking with players and coaches.