New Browns Owner Al Lerner met the press yesterday
alongside team execs Carmen Policy and Bernie Kosar, where
he said he would "like to keep the team's helmets the way
they were" and said that he would like the stadium named
Cleveland Municipal Stadium, according to David Adams of the
AKRON BEACON JOURNAL. Lerner: "I liked everything the way
it was." Asked if that meant he wouldn't sell naming
rights, he added, "If we can live without the revenue from
naming rights, that would be my preference." Lerner said he
does intend to meet with NFLP next week to discuss the
development of a "secondary logo" for the team (AKRON BEACON
JOURNAL, 9/10). In Cleveland, Tony Grossi reports that
Lerner intends to have a "hands-off style." Lerner: "I
understand my responsibilities, but I also understand my
limitations. Carmen is going to run this business." More
Lerner: "I'm going to try to fade away from (the spotlight).
I'm going to try to become irrelevant from (the media's
standpoint)" (Tony Grossi, Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 9/10).
AL' BOUT THAT! Lerner said yesterday he received a call
of congratulations from Indians Owner Richard Jacobs, but
that he had received no such call from Ravens Owner Art
Modell. Lerner: "I have no plans to have words with him
right now. But I don't know. He or I may wake up tomorrow
and feel differently."....A role for Bernie Kosar, who
joined Policy and Lerner at yesterday's press conference,
"has not yet been defined," but he will help select the
team's next Qt QB....Browns Trust President Bill Futterer is
under contract until December and he will remain with the
team "until at least then." Carmen Policy said the team is
not allowed to hire new people until the deal closes, which
could take around 30 days....Lerner added that he plans to
add features "of his own" to the new stadium, "but whether
he will pay for construction overruns on the original design
remains unclear" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 9/10).
DOLAN SPEAKS: Larry Dolan tells the N.Y. TIMES' Richard
Sandomir that his family's bid for the team was $5M less
than Lerner's $530M bid. Dolan said that he raised his bid
three times, from $485M to $510M, then to $525M on Tuesday,
which included $15M for stadium overruns (N.Y. TIMES, 9/10).
In Boston, Will McDonough reports that Dolan "wanted another
chance to raise his bid" on Tuesday morning, but that "was
not allowed." At one point in the meeting room with NFL
owners on Tuesday afternoon, Ravens Owner Art Modell said
"he thought that Dolan, if prodded, would raise his bid to
$600 million." However, the league's expansion committee,
"supported" by NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, "said this
was not the way the process was set up." One NFL owner
said, "Many of the owners were for Chuck Dolan getting the
team because that meant [Don] Shula would be back. They had
enough votes to stop Al Lerner from getting the team, but
they couldn't get enough votes to get Dolan and Shula in, so
they had to give it up" (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/10).
