The Raiders filled their presidential post Thursday. Sandra Douglass Morgan will assume the role of team president, according to Mick Akers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Morgan will be the first Black woman to become an NFL team’s president.
Formerly the Nevada Gaming Control Board chairwoman, Morgan will replace Dan Ventrelle in this role. Ventrelle, who was serving as interim Raiders president after Marc Badain stepped down from the position in 2021, claimed his May dismissal stemmed from his alerting Mark Davis of allegations pertaining to a hostile Raiders work environment.
“Let me be clear – I am not here to avoid or sidestep problems or concerns that need to be addressed,” Morgan said in a letter to team employees, via Akers. “I’ve given long and thoughtful consideration to joining you, and I’ve done so because I believe in the promise of the Raiders. Most importantly, I believe in your core values of integrity, community, and commitment to excellence. I will expect you to embody those and to hold me accountable to doing the same.”
This marks another milestone for the Raiders, who have made several landmark hires throughout their history. They made Tom Flores the NFL’s first Hispanic head coach in 1978, hired Art Shell as the league’s first Black head coach 11 years later and named Amy Trask as the league’s first female CEO. Morgan will step in after the organization has endured a run of off-field turmoil.
Several months after Jon Gruden‘s 2021 resignation in the wake of leaked emails to former Washington president Bruce Allen, which has set off a legal battle, the workplace misconduct allegations surfaced. Badain had been with the Raiders from 1991-2021; Ventrelle had worked for the team for 18 years.
A Las Vegas native, Morgan served on the Nevada Gaming Control Board from 2019-21. Her husband, Don Morgan, was an NFL defensive back — for the Vikings and Cardinals — from 1999-2002.