In our latest episode of the Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast we discuss a very special Silver and Black Thanksgiving.
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00:00 Hi everybody, this is Hondo Carpenter from Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation Las Vegas
00:06 Raiders Insider Podcast.
00:09 And I want to first and foremost wish you all of you a very Merry Christmas.
00:13 It's Merry Christmas, it's tomorrow, sorry.
00:15 Happy Thanksgiving.
00:16 Today is actually Thanksgiving Day.
00:18 I'm getting ready to head over here in a few hours to the in-laws for a quick Thanksgiving.
00:25 And I just want to take a minute and talk to you today about a very Raider Thanksgiving.
00:33 One of the things that I learned from my father, and I learned many things from my father,
00:38 but one of the things that I learned from him was the importance of being thankful.
00:46 And this is all Raiders today, so please stick with me for a second, but I want to explain
00:52 something to you.
00:53 My father's dad died when he was young, very young.
00:59 And so he did not get as much time with his father as all kids would have wanted.
01:05 And so my father purposed in his heart that he was going to be a great dad and be there
01:10 for everything.
01:13 And here was this man, he was successful in business, but he was at everything.
01:21 And being a father mattered to him, not because his dad didn't care.
01:25 It's just his dad had died when he was young and he wanted to make sure he made the most
01:29 of every moment.
01:30 And one thing that I learned from my father is Christmas was big to him.
01:35 He loved Christmas and he loved it.
01:39 And there would be all these presents.
01:41 And you know, when I would make him something when I was a kid, or maybe when I was older
01:46 and got a, had a part-time job, I would buy him something, but I bet I said to him five,
01:52 six, seven, eight times, boy, dad, Christmas kind of sucks and become a dad because all
01:59 the presents for the kids and you don't get that many.
02:01 And he'd say, son, you don't understand.
02:06 There was a reason Thanksgiving comes before Christmas.
02:10 And that's my Christmas.
02:14 I just stop and think about what I'm thankful for.
02:17 Sorry.
02:18 He goes, I get to think about what I'm thankful for.
02:23 And you guys are my present.
02:26 He goes, and when you become a dad, your present is every day.
02:31 And he really taught me about the being thankful for little things because his dad had died
02:37 so young and when he was young, excuse me, that he learned to appreciate things.
02:46 I remember one time there, I bought him a lure, a fishing lure.
02:51 And the first time he caught a fish on it, cause we lived on a lake and he, you know,
02:58 said to me, Hey, I caught a fish on your lure and man, it made me think of you.
03:04 I love you.
03:05 And it just was, that's him.
03:09 And sometimes I think that Raider Nation, especially because of the last 20 years, doesn't
03:14 necessarily take time to think about how good you have it.
03:19 And I want to explain about a couple of things.
03:23 I've written some very deep dive articles in which leaders of other franchises have
03:30 said most teams would trade with the Raiders for their fan base.
03:35 You have a fan base that really cares.
03:39 And I'm going to tell you, that's not normal.
03:42 There are a lot of fan bases that if you're winning, great.
03:45 If you're not, we're not that engaged.
03:47 Raider Nation's engaged.
03:48 Win, lose, or draw.
03:50 I've had so many people tell me, win, lose, or tie, I'm a Raider till I die.
03:56 You need to understand that is not normal.
04:01 It is at some places, but it is more of a rarity than, it's more of the exception than
04:07 the rule.
04:09 And that's why I get so frustrated sometimes when I see Raider fan go after Raider fan.
04:14 You guys are all the same family and you all care.
04:19 Now some of you care and you wanted Derek Carr and some of you care and didn't want
04:26 Derek Carr, but y'all cared.
04:29 Y'all cared.
04:32 And I'm going to tell you, years ago, you guys have heard me say this many times, Matt
04:36 Millen said this to me and I'll never forget it.
04:38 Matt's a dear friend and I love him dearly.
04:41 And I'll never forget this.
04:42 He's in Detroit.
04:43 I'm covering him.
04:44 I was a beat Raider covering the Lions.
04:48 But we're close friends even to this day.
04:53 And Matt talked about how every NFL teams fans thinks they're part of the team.
05:01 Now I've been around a lot of NFL teams and I know kind of the perception of the fan base
05:07 from inside the building.
05:09 And he said, but with the Raiders, the players think the fans are part of the team.
05:19 Man that was powerful to me.
05:22 And there is a relationship that Raider Nation has that is so deep and so connected, both
05:34 with the players and amongst the fans.
05:37 That's the first thing I think that you should be really, really thankful for.
05:41 Number two, stability and ownership.
05:46 Now you may say, well, but look at what Mark's done.
05:49 Okay, let's look at what Mark's done.
05:52 Mark's not the football guy that his dad is.
05:55 I think we all would agree with that because I know Mark would.
06:01 But he's a 10 times better businessman than his dad ever was.
06:07 So he has quadrupled the value of the franchise.
06:12 You went from being a franchise that struggled financially to be able to do things to now
06:20 your pockets are full.
06:21 You can do anything that you want.
06:24 You're flush with cash.
06:26 You have the best stadium in the NFL.
06:28 And I've been to all of them.
06:29 So don't, if you haven't, I don't want to, I don't even want to talk to you.
06:33 I told you guys, it was interesting to me during COVID, the first year I covered the
06:40 team, listening to people who had been to SoFi on national programs, talking about how
06:49 much more better a Legion is.
06:51 I've been to SoFi many times.
06:52 I think it's a beautiful stadium.
06:54 I'm not ripping the stadium, but it's not a Legion.
06:58 It's not close.
06:59 You have a tremendous stadium and oh, by the way, the best team headquarters and training
07:06 center in the National Football League.
07:08 And that's not close.
07:10 I mean, I really would love to see the Raiders, except people are training year round, to
07:18 give some tours of their facility.
07:21 I mean, the outdoor fields, the outdoor pools, the hot tubs, the indoor work, the weight
07:26 rooms, the locker rooms, it's phenomenal.
07:29 The Raiders training facility is phenomenal.
07:32 Not one cent was spared.
07:35 It is phenomenal.
07:37 I'll tell you this, I've eaten in the cafeteria several times, and I would rather eat at the
07:44 cafeteria at the Raiders than any restaurant in Vegas.
07:46 And I've been to all the expensive big ones.
07:49 It's not even close.
07:52 It's amazing.
07:53 The janitorial staff, that place is immaculately clean.
07:59 And they're constantly, the security, the PR people, the executives upstairs, the attorneys,
08:05 just a phenomenal headquarters and phenomenal people work there.
08:11 It's pretty awesome.
08:12 You have a lot to be thankful for there.
08:14 You're not going to have teams, free agents, turn down your team because of your facilities
08:18 or cash.
08:19 That's a big deal.
08:22 And I think that Mark Davis does not get enough credit.
08:26 Now, I think there are things that you can be critical for, for Mark Davis.
08:30 And quite frankly, if you've ever had a chance to talk to him, he's rather critical of himself.
08:37 I have found him to be very much down to earth.
08:41 And quite frankly, I've found him to be warm.
08:46 That's why I felt so bad when fans were going after him in the crowds or out, you know,
08:51 out and about.
08:52 Because he does care.
08:54 But I think there's another angle with him that you need to be thinking about.
09:01 And the firing of Josh McDaniels, I believe was a metamorphical moment for him.
09:11 I don't think he wanted to fire him.
09:12 I mean, it cost him a ton of money, but he knew he needed to and he fouled his gut.
09:20 That was a big deal for me.
09:22 That to me showed me a lot with Mark.
09:25 That's a growth process.
09:26 So I think you got to be thankful for your facilities.
09:28 You have to be thankful for your stadium.
09:30 You got to be thankful for your fan base.
09:32 You got to be thankful for your owner.
09:35 And let's talk about Champ Kelly.
09:39 This is a guy that I heralded that should be considered for the general manager's job
09:44 when Mike Mayock was canned.
09:47 You get him as an assistant and then he's there when you move on from Dave Ziegler.
09:55 Next week, I'm going to get a lot into Champ Bailey.
09:57 I know a lot of you have been asking me about him.
10:00 Why am I so strong on him?
10:01 I'm going to get into that a lot next week.
10:03 So we'll talk more about it next week.
10:06 And then you got to coach who the players love.
10:14 They love and they care about him and he matters to them and they listen and they fight for
10:22 him.
10:23 Come on.
10:24 None of us thinks that this Raiders team is complete.
10:28 None of us thinks that this Raiders team is a Super Bowl contender.
10:33 But man, they got a lot of the tools.
10:38 And this time, there better not be a rebuild because if there's a rebuild, Raider Nation
10:43 has a right to be outraged because you don't need a rebuild.
10:49 You need to get more balance in your spending, talking about defense to offense.
10:56 But you got a very good defense.
10:57 You got a great defensive coordinator.
11:00 You've got some great players all around.
11:05 And I think that you've got a coach that these guys believe in.
11:12 And who knows what happens when the season's over?
11:17 Who knows?
11:19 I've made it clear.
11:21 I'm rooting for Champ Kelly and I'm rooting for AP.
11:25 And I'm not a fan.
11:26 I just root for good people.
11:27 And those two guys are good people.
11:30 Really good people.
11:32 And they're good football minds.
11:35 You don't need good people in those jobs who aren't good football people.
11:40 They are good football people.
11:43 And they're good guys.
11:44 So I'm rooting for them.
11:46 And then lastly, I want to talk to you about your players.
11:50 You got a lot of great players.
11:52 I want you to think about this right now.
11:55 Colton Miller is an exceptional left tackle.
12:01 Daniel Carlson, AJ Cole, exceptional players.
12:05 Devontae Adams, exceptional.
12:08 Max Crosby, exceptional.
12:09 Robert Spillane, exceptional.
12:12 You got a lot of other players that are pushing towards being exceptional
12:16 and are good players.
12:18 And then you got a lot of players with potential to be good or possibly great
12:21 because they're just very young.
12:24 You got a team of hard workers.
12:25 Is there a couple people on the team that I think are probably knuckleheads?
12:28 Yeah, I do.
12:31 But I'm going to tell you, I've said this before.
12:33 I've done this for decades.
12:36 I've never been around a team where there are as many good people as there is
12:42 in this locker room and in this organization.
12:46 It's pretty phenomenal.
12:48 And you guys got a lot to be thankful for.
12:51 I know you're frustrated because every year it's, well, is this the year?
12:55 I get it.
12:56 I get it.
12:58 You may say, no, you don't.
12:59 Really?
12:59 I grew up a Lions fan.
13:01 I'm not anymore.
13:02 I'm not really a fan because I know people in every organization,
13:06 so I root for good people.
13:08 But I knew exactly what that was like.
13:12 So I get it.
13:15 But it doesn't mean you still don't stop and appreciate the good.
13:20 And now I want to talk about from me to you.
13:25 I read a survey recently, and I don't remember where I read it,
13:29 so please forgive me, that said nearly 90% of Americans
13:35 don't feel appreciated.
13:38 And when I read that, that just made me sad.
13:43 There are a lot of people living lives, and they wonder,
13:47 where's the meaning?
13:48 Because if you don't feel appreciated, you're
13:50 going to question the meaning.
13:53 And so I just want to say this to you.
13:57 Occasionally, I'll take a picture when I'm at the Raiders or whatever
14:00 and thank you guys.
14:02 That's not insincere.
14:05 And you have a lot of places that you can go to get your Raiders information.
14:12 I'm certainly not the only one.
14:14 There are lots of good people, some of them
14:16 my friends, who cover this team.
14:17 And you choose to come here.
14:24 And so I just want you, if you're one of those nearly 90% of Americans
14:28 that don't feel appreciated, I appreciate you.
14:34 I'm grateful for you.
14:36 And every single day when I start my day, and one of the things I do
14:41 is I thank the Lord for you guys.
14:43 And I ask that I have his direction so that I can give you the best
14:59 following for sharing.
15:02 I'm thankful for the company I work with, that its business model is, hey,
15:07 everybody's trying to charge everybody for everything.
15:09 Let's give it to them.
15:12 And I hope they share it and allow our coverage to grow.
15:16 That's why we tell you don't pay people for what we give you.
15:19 But I'm thankful for my company.
15:23 And I'm thankful for you guys.
15:24 I appreciate you.
15:26 You are tremendous people.
15:29 I love your emails.
15:31 I mean, I crack up because almost every email or comment I get starts with,
15:35 I've been a fan for 41 years.
15:38 I've been a fan for 37 years.
15:40 I've been a fan for three months, whatever.
15:43 I love how Raider Nation does.
15:44 I've never seen a fan base do that.
15:47 And I love that.
15:48 And so from me to you guys, I just want you to know that I'm thankful for you.
15:54 And I appreciate you.
15:56 To all of our public servants, police officers, firemen, EMT, nurses,
16:02 doctors who don't get today off, we appreciate you.
16:07 We're thankful for you.
16:08 I get to hear from you guys.
16:09 And I had one police officer say to me how much he appreciated my podcast
16:13 because he says, when I'm sitting in my car, I get to listen.
16:18 Thank you to that particular gentleman that sent me in particular.
16:22 I want you to know I'm thinking about you.
16:23 And you can tell I read your email because I just mentioned you.
16:26 But to all of our other amazing police officers, to our military,
16:32 thank you to all of you, whether you've served before
16:36 or you're presently serving.
16:37 I love it.
16:38 I get emails all the time from military people saying, hey, I'm deployed here.
16:44 I'm out of base here.
16:46 And thanks for making me feel like I'm close to the Raiders.
16:49 Man, thank you for protecting our freedom.
16:53 Our American military, you guys and gals are amazing.
16:58 You are the defenders of freedom.
17:04 And you are not ignored.
17:08 Your safety is prayed for every day by a lot of people.
17:12 And ask God that you get to come home.
17:14 So for all of us that get to be with family today,
17:16 it's because of people like you.
17:18 So thank you.
17:19 So as you gather around your Thanksgiving table, or maybe you already have,
17:24 just as a Raider, take time and be thankful for what you have.
17:28 Is it what you want?
17:29 No.
17:29 One thing I love about Raider Nation, if it's not hoisting a Super Bowl,
17:32 it's not what you want.
17:34 I get it.
17:36 I respect it.
17:38 I really do.
17:40 But it doesn't mean you don't stop and appreciate what you have.
17:45 And I think that's really, really cool.
17:47 So from my family to yours, happy Thanksgiving.
17:52 And from all of us at Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation, Las Vegas Raiders Insider
17:57 Podcast, part of the Fans First Sports Network, thank you for all that you do
18:01 for us.
18:02 Thanks for joining us.
18:04 Take time today and think about all the things you have to be excited about as a
18:08 Raider fan.
18:08 And oh, by the way, it's Chiefs Week.
18:12 - You hear that?
18:16 - I tell people all the time.
18:18 It is one of the weeks where the NFL reminds me of college.
18:23 It's just bitter rivalry week, and I love it.
18:25 It's Chiefs Week.
18:26 There's so much to be jacked up and fired about.
18:28 I appreciate all of you.
18:30 I wish you nothing but the best.
18:32 God bless you.
18:32 We'll see you again tomorrow.
18:33 So thank you again.
18:34 Hondo Carpenter from Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation, Las Vegas Raiders Insider.