The Los Angeles Rams Have A New Quarterback, But It’s The Good Old Raiders Who Still Move The Needle

The Los Angeles Rams (3-8) are dreadful, all but out of the playoff picture and they have some of their biggest stars idle with injuries.

They do have a fresh quarterback in Baker Mayfield, so that’s why the secondary ticket market for Thursday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders (5-7) at SoFi Stadium remains strong.

Uhm, not exactly.

It is true that Mayfield could go tonight if John Wolford (neck) isn’t fit, unable to fill the role as the replacement for Matthew Stafford (concussion).

If Wolford is compromised, the Rams are going to turn to Mayfield despite him being able to study L.A. coach Sean McVay’s complex offense for about two days after being released from the Carolina Panthers.

The Rams are wagering little on Mayfield finding his groove, assuming the $1.35 million remaining on his contract for this season.

Mayfield, a former first overall pick in the draft by the Cleveland Browns, is on his third team as he tries for yet another second chance. That it might come against the streaking Raiders isn’t the pull that maintains a get-in ticket priced north of $165.

Instead it’s the Raiders being in the City of Angels that fuels the resell market.

While the Rams have been in L.A. since 2016 and the Chargers set up shop there in 2017, an argument can still be made that the Raiders, who won a Super Bowl while in L.A. during the 1982 season, remain the region’s most popular pro football team.

A scenario could also be presented that the Raiders are second in popularity to the University of Southern California when it comes to a football team that pays its players, but that’s another discussion.

What’s clear is the L.A.’s love for the Raiders hasn’t dimmed, despite the NFL allowing two teams to move into the nation’s second-biggest media market. Even with one of them, the Rams, winning last season’s Super Bowl.

Not only were the Raiders successful in L.A., but when the city went two decades minus a team to call its own, many Raiders backers kept their love for the silver-and-black.

A weekend morning at most Southern California airports, during the football season, illustrates the stranglehold the Raiders have on L.A. Flights are filled with Raiders fans crisscrossing the nation to watch their preferred squad.

So with the Raiders rolling into town to face the Rams, tickets are priced according.

Consider Sunday night’s game between the Chargers and Miami Dolphins, billed as the showdown between quarterbacks Justin Herbert and Tua Tagovailoa, that is also being played at Sofi.

The get-in price for the contest highlighting two great young players and a pair of teams competing for a playoff berth, is half the price of the Rams-Raiders game.

Just win baby has long been the Raiders’ creed. When it comes to them playing in L.A., the area’s ticket brokers are winners, too.