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NFL Owners Could Vote By End Of Year On Relocating One Or Two Teams To L.A.

The NFL could vote as soon as the end of this year on relocating one or two teams to L.A., Exec VP/Business Ventures Eric Grubman told the owners at their annual league meeting yesterday. Grubman is in charge of the league's effort to return to L.A. after a 20-year absence. Currently, the period the league has set for teams to notify the NFL of plans to relocate to L.A. is Jan. 1-Feb. 15. But owners were told to be ready for that period to come earlier, Grubman told THE DAILY yesterday after he had briefed the owners. He also said it is possible the period remains the first six weeks of '16. Grubman's comments came on the heels of two influential owners predicting movement to L.A. by the '16 season. Giants President & CEO John Mara and Patriots Owner Robert Kraft, both members of the six-owner L.A. committee, each told reporters they thought one or two teams would be in the market by the '16 season. The annual meeting continues through tomorrow (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer). In N.Y., Gary Myers notes Giants Chair & Exec VP Steve Tisch believes that if there is a "vote in December, it would be too late for a team to move into a temporary home" in '16. But that would "create a one-year lame duck situation and the league will try to do everything it can to avoid that scenario" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 3/24). NFL Network's Judy Battista said, "This is Topic A here at these meetings, that's what the owners are really talking about in the hallways." She added, "The timeline seems to be accelerating" ("NFL Total Access," NFL Network, 3/23).

IT TAKES TWO TO TANGO: Kraft yesterday said he feels there will be "two teams by 2016" in L.A. Kraft: "I think the commitment will be made. I don't know which two teams." Grubman said that the eventual stadium site "will not have to house two teams but it has to be two-team capable." He said, "The probability that we will get something done in Los Angeles has gone up. My own estimation is there is a good possibility of 2016." Kraft added, "I don't think we consider L.A. without a first-class venue. There's so much competition for the entertainment dollar there. One way or another we're going to have a great stadium." Kraft said that owners "envision an NFL West," where the stadium would "become a regular Super Bowl host city and in the mix for Pro Bowls and other flagship events" (USATODAY.com 3/23). Kraft added, "There might just be one team but I really think, to support the financial commitment of doing the kind of stadium that's necessary in L.A., you need the resources of two teams. And then, whether it's done simultaneously or not, personally I think it's the best way, it's in a way what happened in New York/New Jersey. They corrected a situation that'd gone on for many years, I think the Jets felt like maybe they were second-class." He said that an expansion team "would be incredibly 'difficult' and wouldn't be likely" (NFL.com, 3/23). Chiefs Chair & CEO Clark Hunt said, “Up to this point, there would be a stadium project and some teams that might be interested. But now, there are some stadium projects that are being pushed by teams that are interested, and I think that’s the game-changer, and means we’ll probably have a team in LA" (K.C. STAR, 3/24). ESPN's Bill Polian said of two teams potentially playing in L.A., "That's been the NFL's plan all along. ... Now you can argue whether that's good or not, but the fact of the cost of building a stadium -- a shared stadium, shared cost -- that's been their master plan all along" ("NFL Live," ESPN2, 3/23).

DOING THEIR HOMEWORK: In L.A., Sam Farmer reports team owners yesterday got an hour-long update from the league on "what's happening with both L.A. proposals" from Rams Owner Stan Kroenke's group and the joint Raiders-Chargers proposal. Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones called the briefing the "most thorough information session I can remember" on the topic. But Farmer notes the update "didn't include an endorsement of either plan." Representatives from the Rams, Chargers and Raiders "likely will make stadium presentations at one-day meetings in May, although it's unlikely a relocation vote will take place before the end of this season." Chargers President Dean Spanos said of possibly relocating from San Diego to L.A., "It's a very emotional time right now, obviously. But I have to sit here and think about the big picture. I'm not thinking about right now, next year, two years or three years from now. ... My focus is on the stadium. That's the future of this franchise." Spanos said that, absent a deal in San Diego, the Chargers "would pursue an L.A. stadium on their own if the Raiders were to reach an agreement to stay in Oakland" (L.A. TIMES, 3/24). In L.A., Vincent Bonsignore notes Spanos "insists he wants to be in San Diego," but he is "concerned that wish might no longer be an option." Spanos: "We have said we prefer to stay in San Diego, that has always been our choice. But at the end of the day, after 14 years we have no options in San Diego right now" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 3/24). In San Diego, Michael Gehlken notes if the Chargers "relocate from San Diego, don't expect another team" to take their place. Grubman said, "San Diego is a great city, ... (but) it's a low-probability bet for any market to attract a team when expansion isn't on the table. If you have a team, you should do everything to keep it because the backfill is a low probability" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 3/24).

Kroenke purchased the 60-acre piece of 
Inglewood land in January '14
A FAIR CHANCE: In St. Louis, David Hunn in a front-page piece reports Grubman "emphasized that home markets would have a chance to pitch their own proposals before a decision is made to move any team" to L.A. Grubman: "The last thing I’d want is for a relocation proposal to come forward, and a home market to say, ‘Wait. You told us we had another few months.’ I don’t want to do that.” But he also "made it clear that no project can quite be termed 'real' yet." Grubman noted St. Louis is making progress "each day and each month.” But he said that Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon’s team "needs to nail down financing" for a new stadium. He added the NFL’s market study has to show "potential that can last for decades." Texans Owner Robert McNair, who sits on the owners' L.A. committee, said, "We want to treat local markets, home markets, fairly. But you know there have been markets where people have been trying to get new stadiums for 14 years and gotten nowhere; they've gotten lip service" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 3/24). Kraft said of St. Louis, "If they come up with a plan that looks pretty good and a strong financial package, I think we -- the NFL -- have an obligation in my opinion to be able to have a team in St. Louis." He added, "We have to be very careful and responsible to different markets who really step up and do what they want to do (in terms of keeping a team). If they do, we have a responsibility to make sure there’s a team in that market" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 3/24).

STANLEY'S TOOLS: ESPN.com's Nick Wagoner wrote Kroenke is the "simple" answer as to why the NFL might now move a team to L.A. Kroenke provides the "holy trinity needed to make it happen: the land, the money and the team." Kroenke's purchase of the 60-acre tract of land in Inglewood in January '14 "started the ball rolling." The announcement this January that he has "partnered with Stockbridge Capital group to build the City of Champions project on that site only made it all the more real." Though Kroenke's "continued silence on this and pretty much every other topic can be frustrating, he's also left himself with a certain amount of plausible deniability." Colts Owner Jim Irsay said yesterday that Kroenke "has never approached him" to discuss L.A. and "acknowledged that behind closed doors Kroenke isn't making his intentions clear as it pertains to a move." In doing so, Kroenke is "maintaining his position as the lead domino ready to tip over the rest however he best sees fit" (ESPN.com, 3/23). NBC Sports' Keith Arnold said of Kroenke's two-team proposal, "It feels like one of those checkmate moves you make if you're a billionaire who wants to be the first guy to Los Angeles with a team. To me, (Kroenke) is crossing off the boxes that are going to get people pissed off at him that are owners and this feels like a really smart move" ("Rome," CBSSN, 3/23).

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