NFL owners "will choose" between L.A. and Houston as
the league's 32nd franchise during their annual meetings
next month in Phoenix, according to Len Pasquarelli of the
ATLANTA CONSTITUTION. But "identifying who will own the
team ... figures to take a while longer." Yesterday in
Atlanta, the NFL's Finance Committee and Expansion Committee
met for four hours to discuss the process, and afterward,
Steelers President Dan Rooney said, "It's not clear yet
whether we'll chose an owner or simply select the city and
go to a bid process." Pasquarelli reports that the NFL
"does not seem sold" on either the Ed Roski/Eli Broad or
Michael Ovitz-led group looking to land an L.A. team.
Pasquarelli adds that "one hurdle confronting" NFL
Commissioner Paul Tagliabue is that "some owners don't want
the league to fund a stadium" in L.A., and "several" league
execs "concede that they lack the votes for such a move"
(ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 2/17). Despite the belief that L.A.
will be selected as the site of the 32nd team over Houston,
Tagliabue said, "We're not leaning toward either city." NFL
Senior VP/Communications Joe Browne: "For every positive Los
Angeles has, Houston has a positive. Especially with [Bob]
McNair. The owners are very impressed with him." But in
Houston, John Williams writes that NFL execs discussed
giving L.A. "possibly another year to formulate a financing
plan and the type of stadium the league wants." The league
is "even considering sending one of its officials" to L.A.
to "work out a deal with that city's political and business
leaders" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/17). In L.A., T.J. Simers
reports that the NFL "apparently is no longer considering
the Carson site," and that if the league moves forward in
L.A., it will try to form a partnership with local area
business execs and politicians and put together a new
stadium financing plan. The league would like Broad and
Roski or Ovitz to sit on the committee, which would "be
assembled to forge a stadium deal and potentially produce
the team's owner" (L.A. TIMES, 2/17). On CBS SportsLine,
Ray Buck writes that Ovitz's proposal "has been said to be
going up in fumes" (CBS SportsLine, 2/17). Tagliabue said
that the NFL is not eyeing any additional L.A. stadium sites
besides those offered by Ovitz and Roski/Broad's New
Coliseum Partners: "We're not going to go off and build a
stadium in Burbank" (Bob Keisser, PRESS-TELEGRAM, 2/17).
UP CLOSE WITH ED ROSKI: In L.A., Don Lee profiled Roski
and called him a "reticent man who doesn't chomp on cigars
or seek the limelight." Roski said that he has spent more
than $3M in his "odyssey" for an NFL team and has met with
"more than" 20 NFL owners. Lee: "The owners have said
little publicly. But, according to [agent Leigh] Steinberg
and others, Roski has surprised them with his sincere style
and forceful delivery" (L.A. TIMES, 2/14).
