Why is the raider game delayed

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The NFL has moved the Las Vegas Raiders vs. Cleveland Browns game from Saturday to Monday due to a COVID-19 outbreak among Cleveland’s players.

The Browns are reporting more than 20 players have been placed on a COVID-reserved list in the past week.

The game is now a doubleheader and scheduled for 2 p.m. (PT) Monday and will be followed by the Vikings vs. Bears at 5:20 p.m. (PT).

The Raiders were scheduled to fly to Cleveland on Friday.

UPDATE: We have official word now that the game will start at 8:55 ET.

For those wondering, SoFi Stadium is open at the sides, as seen in this photo:

The Los Angeles Chargers versus the Las Vegas Raiders Monday Night Football game is delayed due to thunder and lightning in the area. This comes as a surprise to many, as SoFi Stadium is covered. Unfortunately it isn’t an actual dome and, as ESPN’s Kevin Seifert puts it, SoFi is just an “expensive carport.”

This game will happen of course, but we’ll need the lightning to go away and read through all the tweets joking about a weather delay in a dome first.

The Raiders come into this game atop the AFC West at 3-0 while the Chargers sit in second at 2-1. It’s still early in a 17 game season, but with the Kansas City Chiefs off to a slow start, this is a good chance for these two division rivals to get a step up on the back-to-back AFC champions.

The Raiders come into this game as three-point underdogs despite their undefeated status, while the Chargers are coming off a big win over the Chiefs.

The Raiders-Browns game, originally scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 18, has been moved to Monday, Dec. 20 at 2 p.m. PT on NFL Network.

The postponement comes after multiple players and coaches from the Browns organization tested positive for COVID-19 throughout the week.

"We have made these schedule changes based on medical advice and after discussion with the NFLPA as we are seeing a new, highly transmissible form of the virus this week resulting in a substantial increase in cases across the league," the NFL said in a press release.

By continuing to use this site, you consent to the use of cookies. To learn more about cookies and how to disable them, view our Cookie Policy.

By clicking I Agree on this screen you agree that Say Media and its partners may process your personal data for the purposes of information storage and access; personalisation; ad selection, delivery, and reporting; content selection, delivery and reporting; and measurement. For more information please view our Privacy Policy.

Players leave the field at SoFi Stadium during a weather delay shortly before the scheduled start of an NFL football game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders, Monday, Oct. 4, 2021, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — The kickoff of Monday night’s game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers was delayed 35 minutes because of lightning.

SoFi Stadium has a roof, but is classified as open-air due to the north side being open on the upper deck. Torrential rain hit the Los Angeles area nearly an hour before kickoff.

The stadium opened last year and will host this season’s Super Bowl.

___

More AP NFL coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL

AFC Week 4 overreactions: Bill Belichick comes up short of revenge

Mackenzie Salmon 'overreacts' to the biggest storylines in the AFC after Week 4 action in the NFL.

You'd think that a domed arena like SoFi Stadium would be impervious to weather delays, wouldn't you?

Before "Monday Night Football" kicked off between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders, the game was delayed due to lightning and storms in the area. It's already unusual to have a thunderstorm in the Los Angeles area, but it's another thing entirely to see the start of a football game delayed by lightning when said game is taking place under a roof.

To be fair, SoFi Stadium isn't actually enclosed in the way you'd think a domed stadium would be, as the sides of the stadium are open. Even that small amount of exposure to the elements prompted the officials to delay the game for approximately a half hour as the storm passed.

Since people are firing off bits at a truly breathtaking rate: SoFi Stadium has a roof, but the sides are open. (See: yellow circle.) There is lightning in the area, hence the danger. pic.twitter.com/gKNCdkvx8a
— Daniel Popper (@danielrpopper) October 5, 2021

The best part was Raiders' head coach Jon Gruden's reaction to being told of the delay, as his bewildered expression upon gazing at the roof above says it all.

Well, it appears a stadium with a roof can still experience a weather delay.

The Monday night game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders at SoFi Stadium was delayed due to weather and kickoff time came 35 minutes following the originally scheduled 8:15 p.m. PT start.

The Chargers went on to beat the Raiders, 28-14, but Las Vegas coach Jon Gruden said the delay had no bearing on the finish.

"It didn't, it didn't have anything to do with it," Gruden told reporters.

Though SoFi Stadium has a translucent roof, there are openings in the upper deck that allow the breeze into the stadium, and with lightning strikes in the area, league officials exercised caution.

"No, I'm not an engineer, I have no idea. I have never heard that. I thought it was a joke," Gruden said of a weather delay in an indoor stadium. "But it affected both teams."

SoFi Stadium is in its second year of operation, and because Los Angeles rarely experiences inclement weather, it was undoubtedly a first in the facility's young history. With nothing to do but wait until kickoff, we can acknowledge it's oddly appropriate that the team nicknamed the Bolts had a primetime game delayed by lightning. That's certainly worth a Gruden scowl.

"I've never had an indoor stadium with a lightning delay," Gruden said. "This was a bizarre night for all of us."