Raiders open the preseason against the Detroit Lions

The Oakland Raiders open the 2018 preseason with a home contest against the Detroit Lions at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Friday, Aug. 10 at 7:30 p.m. PT. The matchup follows a week that features two joint practices against the Lions' ball club at the Silver and Black's training camp home at the Napa Valley Marriott in Napa, Calif. After two weeks of training camp, Head Coach Jon Gruden and the Raiders will begin a preseason slate that showcases two NFC North and two NFC West opponents. The club opens with the Lions and will then travel to play the Los Angeles Rams, before returning home to face the Green Bay Packers in Week 3 and concluding the preseason schedule on the road against the Seattle Seahawks. 

Coach Gruden, now in his second stint as the head coach for the Silver and Black, returns to the sideline for the first time since 2008. QB Derek Carr, entering his fifth season, will again be at the helm of the offense after a year that saw him become one of five quarterbacks in NFL history to record 100 touchdown passes through a player's first four seasons. On the defensive side of the ball, LB Bruce Irvin looks to build upon his strong 2017 campaign after tying a career high with eight sacks and notching another four forced fumbles, becoming just one of two players since 2016 to total 15 sacks and 10 forced fumbles.

The Raiders will host the Detroit Lions in Week 1 of the preseason, marking the first time they have met the Lions in an exhibition match since 2014 when Oakland earned a 27-26 victory at home.

Following Friday's game, the Raiders will return to Napa, for their final days of training camp practices before making their first road trip of the preseason slate, a matchup in Los Angles at the Coliseum against the Rams on Aug. 18. The Rams will travel across the country to play their first preseason contest against the Baltimore Ravens this week.

Here are some notable connections between the Raiders and the Lions:

-Raiders quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan held the same position with the Lions for the past two seasons (2016-17). 

-Raiders offensive coordinator Greg Olson started with the Lions in 2004 as a quarterbacks coach before adding the role of offensive coordinator in 2005, which marked his first season in control of the offense. 

-Raiders LB Tahir Whitehead entered the NFL as the Lions' fifth-round draft pick of the 2012 NFL Draft and spent six seasons in Detroit before joining Oakland this past offseason. With the Lions, Whitehead played in 94 games with 54 starts and recorded 366 tackles (268 solo), three sacks, four interceptions, two forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries.

Oakland will travel to Los Angeles to face the Rams in Week 2, which marks the second straight year the two teams have faced each other in the preseason.