Raiders and Chargers Still Plan to Play in Oakland Amid Air Quality Concerns

Air quality in Oakland is dangerously poor as wildfires rage to the north.

The Raiders-Chargers game in Oakland on Sunday will go on as scheduled, the team said Friday afternoon. 

Wildfires are raging in areas north of Oakland, burning more than 200,000 acres of land. At least 32 people have died and thousands of buildings have been destroyed as tens of thousands have been evacuated. Though the fires are about 45 miles away from Oakland, smoke has wafted toward the city and led to poor air quality alerts. 

The NFL began entertaining the possibility of moving the game on Thursday, when the Raiders had to cut their practice short due to the smoky air. The league considered using the 49ers’ home stadium, further south in the Bay Area, and the mayor of San Diego offered to have the game play there. Flipping the game to the Chargers’ stadium in Los Angeles is not an option because the LA Galaxy MLS team has a game this weekend. 

The game is scheduled for 1:25 ET at the Oakland Coliseum. Derek Carr will return to the field after missing just one game with a broken bone in his back.