The San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders used to make it a regular habit to schedule a joint training camp practice, and then hold a preseason game that alternated between Candlestick Park and the Oakland Coliseum. Fan violence at the 2011 game resulted in the cancellation of the preseason series.
On Thursday, Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio told Bay Area media he hoped to renew the series. He pointed out the decrease in travel that it would provide. Later in the day, 49ers GM John Lynch was told what Del Rio said, and himself said, “Yea, let’s do it.” Lynch said the two organizations could get over the violence from 2011, presenting it as something good for league and community.
Most NFL teams seem to hold joint practices at one point or another. For the 49ers, the last two years saw joint practices with the Denver Broncos. The arrival of John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan could very well mean a third year of joint practices with the Broncos, considering their histories with the organization.
I was in attendance at that last 49ers-Raiders preseason game, and I remember deciding to leave early in the third quarter because it was getting a little too rowdy. I had a general game credential but no ticket, so I was wandering around the stadium throughout the first half. In the third quarter, more fights were breaking out, and I decided to get the heck out of Dodge. It was later learned that there were two shootings after the game and a particularly severe beating in one of the bathrooms.