Top image: Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, photographed in 2014. The Raiders play there Sunday for the first time since 2018. Photo: Matthew Roth / CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The Raiders are coming back to the Bay Area for a regular-season game for the first time since the franchise moved to Las Vegas, and they find a 49ers team that leads the NFC. Kickoff at Levi’s Stadium is 1:25 p.m. Pacific (4:25 p.m. Eastern) on FOX, according to the 49ers’ game preview.
49ers vs. Raiders: what to watch
San Francisco is 6-1 and comes off its bye week. Its only loss was a 29-20 defeat at Atlanta in Week 7, and the 49ers lead both the NFC West and the conference, according to the team. Las Vegas is 4-4 in its first season under head coach Klint Kubiak. His brother, Klay Kubiak, is the 49ers’ offensive coordinator, which makes Sunday a family matchup on the play sheets.
The biggest roster story is on the 49ers’ defensive line. Nick Bosa is set to return, and DeForest Buckner, whom San Francisco reacquired from Indianapolis, is back with the team that drafted him. Christian McCaffrey was a full participant in Friday’s practice, and the team said wide receiver Demarcus Robinson was likely to be activated. Brock Purdy has completed 69.2% of his passes this season.
For Las Vegas, quarterback Kirk Cousins has thrown for 2,124 yards, running back Ashton Jeanty has 337 rushing yards, tight end Brock Bowers has 41 catches for 547 yards and Maxx Crosby has three sacks, according to the 49ers’ preview. The two offenses arrive nearly even: the Raiders average 27.6 points a game and the 49ers 28.1.
The 49ers lead the regular-season series 8-7, according to the preview. The last Raiders visit to Santa Clara, on Nov. 1, 2018, ended 34-3 for San Francisco. The most recent meeting was a 37-34 overtime 49ers win on Jan. 1, 2023.
Sunday is also the 49ers’ Salute to Service game. Starship is scheduled to play at halftime, and special teams coordinator Brant Boyer is the team’s nominee for the NFL’s Salute to Service Award.
Warriors 126, Magic 119 (OT)
Stephen Curry scored a season-high 41 points as Golden State beat Orlando in overtime Saturday at Chase Center for its seventh straight win, the Associated Press reported. The Warriors are 7-3 after opening the season 0-3.
The night added to Curry’s late-career record book. It was his 16th 40-point game since turning 35, the most in NBA history, and he became the seventh player with at least 26,000 points, 5,000 rebounds and 6,000 assists, according to the AP. Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg added 23 points. The announced crowd was 18,064. The NBA.com recap has highlights.
Sharks fall 4-3 in Dallas
The Sharks lost their fifth straight game, 4-3 to the Stars on Saturday, and dropped to 7-11-1, NHL.com reported. Dallas scored three power-play goals. Macklin Celebrini had three assists, one on each San Jose goal, and played a career-high 28:05. Michael Misa opened the scoring, Ivar Stenberg scored early in the second period and Will Smith added a 5-on-3 power-play goal to pull San Jose within one.
“I thought we did some good things again, some positives, but unfortunately come up on the losing end again,” coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “We’re making strides these last two games.”
San Jose State 30, Northern Illinois 19
San Jose State beat Northern Illinois 30-19 on Saturday to reach 5-5, 3-3 in Mountain West play, according to SJSU Athletics. Viliami Teu ran for two touchdowns. Quarterback Daniel Rolovich completed 16 of 27 passes for 231 yards, including a 29-yard touchdown to Dominique McKenzie, the AP reported. The Spartans’ defense recorded five sacks.
One more win would give San Jose State six, the usual threshold for bowl eligibility. The Spartans play at Air Force on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 4 p.m. Pacific, according to the team schedule.
The long view
Sunday’s game is a reminder of how much the Bay Area’s sports map has changed in six years. The Raiders now visit as an out-of-town opponent, and the old Bay Area rivalry has become a once-every-few-seasons event rather than a regional fixture. On the court and on the ice, the region is watching two very different timelines: Curry, 38, is still setting longevity records, while Celebrini, at 20, is logging 28 minutes a night for a rebuilding Sharks team that has yet to turn its young core into wins. San Jose State’s push toward a bowl gives the South Bay a college story to follow into late November.
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