a "farewell" game to one of its beloved teams Johnathan Hankins Jersey , as the Raiders dismantled Denver on Monday Night Football in what was intended to be their final game in..." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesHorizontal - WhiteSilver And Black Pridean Oakland Raiders communityLog In or Sign UpLog InSign UpFanpostsFanshotsRaidersOddsAboutMastheadCommunity GuidelinesStubHubMoreAll 322 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteFanposts Fanshots Raiders StoriesScheduleRosterStatsYahoo Raiders NewsYahoo Raiders Team PageYahoo Raiders ReportYahoo Raiders Depth ChartYahoo Raiders TransactionsYahoo Raiders PhotosOdds About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub d5;Warriors stay alive to get one final farewell in Oakland New,39commentsPDTShareTweetShareShareWarriors stay alive to get one final farewell in Oakland Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sportsit was not so long ago that Oakland hosted a r0;farewellr1; game to one of its beloved teams, as the Raiders dismantled Denver on Monday Night Football in what was intended to be their final game in Oakland. The Raiders came back for another year, because they didnr17;t have anywhere else to play, but that wonr17;t be the case for the Golden State Warriors, as Chase Arena is on schedule to open in San Francisco prior to the beginning of next basketball season in October.Had the Warriors lost Game 5 against the Raptors tonight, they would never have played in Oakland again after being there since the 1962 season. But they held on for a one-point victory, and the Oracle Arena will be rocking for the real farewell game, Game 6 on Thursday night. It will be played right next to the Oakland Coliseum that the Raiders will say their last goodbyes to later this year, with the final regular season game against the Jaguars on December 15. I suppose stranger things have happened than a Raiders home playoff game, but letr17;s not count any chickens here.Itr17;s a pretty bad look for the city of Oakland to lose two of their most storied professional teams in the same year, but have their most irrelevant team, the Ar17;s, approved for a brand new stadium at Howard Terminal. It does not seem possible for a city government to bungle a situation this badly Tyrell Williams Jersey , but Oakland has managed it.Despite their alarming incompetence, there is little doubt that both the Warriors and Raiders will feel the love from their Oakland faithful before they head to more lucrative climes. While the Raiders will move one state over, the Warriors at least will be just a bridge crossing away. ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP)Derrick Johnson has been the enemy in Oakland for 13 years, tormenting the Raiders while wearing red for the Kansas City Chiefs.Johnson has traded sides in the fierce AFC West rivalry, joining the Raiders as the veteran anchor at middle linebacker in a defense that is being rebuilt this offseason.r1;It was different, I donr17;t want to say weird, but itr17;s different to put on the silver and black r11; even shirt r11; because we havenr17;t put on jerseys and helmets and all of that stuff yet,r1; Johnson said Wednesday. r1;Even to put on the shirt, it was different for me. But you know what, when we got in the middle of the field, when you talk ball and you start running around, tossing the football around and calling plays and going over backs, Ir17;m very familiar to that. So Trent Brown Jersey , that went out of my mind really fast.r1;Johnson has been one of the better linebackers in the league during his career but was allowed to leave Kansas City earlier this offseason as the team tried to get younger. The 35-year-old Johnson is a four-time Pro Bowler and the career tackles leader for the Chiefs.He had options about where to play this year but ultimately opted to join the Raiders, where he will take over the spot at middle linebacker that NaVorro Bowman held after joining Oakland midway through last season.Johnson said the enthusiasm of coach Jon Gruden and the linebacker-friendly scheme of coordinator Paul Guenther were what made his decision to sign with the Raiders.r1;The main reason Ir17;m still playing ball and chasing a championship ring just because I believe I have a lot left in the tank,r1; he said. r1;Thatr17;s the only reason Ir17;m back. When I get to a point where Ir17;m like, man, Ir17;m hanging on, Ir17;ll get out, Ir17;ll get out of the NFL. But right now, and I expressed this to Coach Gruden, I wasnr17;t interested in some type of rebuilding atmosphere. As soon as I said that, he had that look in his eye like, your17;re talking about the sense of urgency to win. Thatr17;s exactly right.r1;Johnson has appeared in 182 games with 169 starts since being drafted in the first round in 2005. He piled up 1,262 tackles to easily shatter the Chiefs franchise record, had 27sacks and picked off 14 passes, returning four of them for touchdowns.He had a career-best 179 tackles in 2011 Lamarcus Joyner Jersey , when he was voted the Chiefsr17; team MVP.Johnson accumulated his impressive stats despite missing part of two seasons with ruptured Achilles tendons. He returned from the first one as good as ever, earning his most recent Pro Bowl trip in 2015, but the second seemed to finally take a step out of his legs last season.Johnson said he feels much healthier now than he did at this time a year ago.r1;This offseason I was working out and I was like, man, itr17;s a lot different from last year coming off an injury,r1; he said. r1;My burst is back, itr17;s better than ever and itr17;s a good feeling because itr17;s going to help me make plays, itr17;s going to help me be explosive, and the longer your17;re out from your season-ending injury, it usually gets better and it helps you out mentally. This will be my second season out from my last Achilles injury. I was healthy last year. Ir17;m even better this year because I got a really good offseason training that I really didnr17;t get to do last year because I was coming off of the injury.r1;The Raiders need an anchor in the middle of their defense. Bowman fared well in that role after being signed last October following his release by San Francisco. There was interest in bringing him back for a second season but the two sides couldnr17;t agree on a price.Oakland didnr17;t address that need at linebacker in this yearr17;s draft until the sixth round with the pick of Washington linebacker Azeem Victor.r12;
