Because of the financial strains associated with owning the Raiders, late owner Al Davis actually considered selling the team a few years before he died in 2011, a former team employee has revealed.
Former Raiders CEO Amy Trask, who served in the position from 1997 until 2013, sat down for an interview with Sports Illustrated's Hondo Carpenter and revealed Davis once talked about possibly selling the team.
Trask spoke about a conversation she once had with Davis in which he cited the team's financial issues as a reason for wanting to get out. Ultimately, she talked him out of it.
“At one point a couple of years before he passed away, he just got tired of it, and he said to me, ‘Let’s just sell the whole team. Let’s just sell the controlling interest. Let’s just sell it. Let’s be done with it. This is hard on you. You’re always having to find us money. You’re just going through lengths to find this. Let’s just sell the whole thing,'” Trask said.
Trask added that she doesn't think Davis' son and current owner, Mark Davis, ever knew his father was even considering it.
“I don’t think he (Mark Davis) ever knew that his dad had gotten to the point where he just said, ‘Amy, sell the team,’” she said.
Trask fought on Mark's behalf to keep Al from selling the team in order to leave it to his son.
“I looked at (Al Davis) and said, ‘You want to leave this team to your wife and your son. You want your son to have this team. I will find you the money,’ and I went and found the money.”
“I fought for it so he could pass it on to Mark," Trask added. "And of course, to Carol, but of course, Carol was of the same generation as Al, so ultimately Mark.”
At the very least, Mark Davis should be sending Trask a thank you card for what she did.
