The NFL could wait until March, and possibly April, to decide which teams -- if any -- are allowed to relocate to L.A. next year. NFL Exec VP/Business Ventures Eric Grubman, who is in charge of the L.A. process, after hours of meetings with owner committees last night told reporters that owners could take up the issue any time between January and April. "If you said March versus April, hard for me to quibble there,” he said. That is a slightly longer time frame than the January and February timeline many had expected, and would give the team or teams little time to market and introduce themselves in the new market. The three cities hoping to hold onto their teams -- Oakland, San Diego and St. Louis -- each presented their merits to the 14-15 owners who attended (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer). The AP's Barry Wilner wrote the cities "made thorough and impassioned presentations," with Oakland speaking first, "followed by San Diego and then St. Louis." The league "has set a special meeting in Dallas on Dec. 2 at which substantial steps could come, including moving up from January the deadline for application to relocate" (AP, 11/11). Jets Owner Woody Johnson reiterated that the owners "may take until March to make a decision." In N.Y., Ken Belson notes the options being considered are a joint proposal by the Raiders and Chargers for a stadium in Carson and a facility in Inglewood for the Rams, and the owners "appeared to be far from determining which of the two proposals they preferred." One owner said, "I do not have a feel for where this is going to end up. There are too many variables, and it will take a lot of politicking before we get to a final decision" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/12). In St. Louis, David Hunn in a front-page piece notes the owners came out of the meetings "promising to protect 'viable' home markets." 49ers CEO Jed York: "I’m looking more at the home markets right now, making sure we do everything we can to exhaust every option in those markets. That’s what my priority is, and I think that’s what the league’s priority is" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 11/12).
OAKLAND: The TIMES' Belson notes Oakland "has been viewed as the least likely to keep its team because the city and the developers have been slow to push a credible replacement for the Raiders’ current home" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/12). In L.A., Vincent Bonsignore notes Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf yesterday "delivered a heartfelt presentation on behalf of keeping the Raiders in the East Bay, she attached no actual plan to her words" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 11/12). In S.F., Rachel Swan in a front-page piece writes Oakland's odds for keeping the Raiders "went from not-so-good to bad" yesterday (S.F. CHRONICLE, 11/12). Schaaf: "We recognized we are behind the other cities, but considering where we are, it was well received. ... We’ve tried to communicate very clearly that we’re really changing our approach” (N.Y. TIMES, 11/12).
SAN DIEGO: In California, Scott Reid writes San Diego officials "continued to struggle to gain traction with the NFL in their bid to hold onto the franchise." In a 40-minute meeting, Mayor Kevin Faulconer, San Diego County Supervisor Ron Roberts and Nixon Peabody Managing Dir Chris Melvin, the city's chief stadium negotiator, "went over a presentation that was similar to one city officials made to the league’s Los Angeles committee in August in suburban Chicago." However, the "biggest blow" to San Diego’s hopes "came from an unlikely source." York told the group they could not build a stadium for the price they were claiming, saying, "Your numbers are light" (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 11/12). In San Diego, Kevin Acee reports the city's contingent felt it "had done what it came across the country to do." Faulconer: "There was a receptiveness to hearing the steps we’re taking" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 11/12). The mayor added that he "felt the discussions were 'robust.'" He said, "Everyone in that room was fully engaged. We talked a lot about the momentum we have in San Diego" (AP, 11/11). The UNION-TRIBUNE's Acee cites one owner in attendance as saying, like Johnson, that he "was undecided between Carson and Inglewood." That owner "handicapped San Diego as the most impressive of the presentations." But he added, "I just don’t know if they’re going to give them time to do it" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 11/12).
ST. LOUIS: The POST-DISPATCH's Hunn notes Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon and his stadium task force "presented their plan for a new riverfront arena in St. Louis, and complained to owners that it was hard to negotiate without a team at the table." Panthers Owner and Committee on L.A. Opportunities member Jerry Richardson said that a St. Louis stadium proposal which "meets 'the protocol for the NFL on relocation' would force the league to keep the Rams" in the city. Richardson: "Those are the rules." Hunn notes it is the first time that an owner "has voiced such a declaration so bluntly." Presenters included Nixon, task force co-heads Dave Peacock and Bob Blitz, Barrett Sports Group Founder & Principal Owner Dan Barrett, HOK Design Principal Bill Johnson, and Goldman Sachs Managing Dir Greg Carey. Nixon called the discussion "productive" and said owners were impressed by the "maturity" of the St. Louis proposal (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 11/12). Meanwhile, the L.A. DAILY NEWS' Bonsignore notes Richardson is "firmly behind" the Carson project and "actually had the nerve to come out and say it. That "wasn’t so much a surprise as it was a shockingly refreshing display of candor." Richardson "became the first owner to admit which way he was leaning on one of the biggest decisions the NFL has faced in its long, storied history." After months and months of meetings and hearing from the three home markets, one would think the owners "had a better command of a direction" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 11/12).
NOT IN THE CLEAR YET: Despite the statement put out by the task force chair seeking to build a new stadium in St. Louis, Grubman noted the city is not there yet. Grubman: "We are not at the place with respect to the St. Louis proposal that I would be confident that it would draw the support of the membership." Peacock said the city’s Board of Aldermen may not vote until the middle of next month on a critical funding element. Grubman added owners were concerned with the $158M naming-rights deal the task force negotiated with National Car Rental, in part because around half of the money would be dedicated to public funds. The task force proposes replacing that money with gameday taxes. But Peacock said, “We clearly communicated how the construct of that financing works and why; that was a big part of our presentation. We knew going in that would be a hot issue so we covered it pretty extensively" (Kaplan).
IN CONCLUSION: The UNION-TRIBUNE's Acee notes what "remains clear from discussions with multiple sources" is that Kroenke and Chargers Chair Dean Spanos "remain intent on moving their franchises" to L.A. (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 11/12). Raiders Owner Mark Davis "has 'made it known' that San Diego would become a serious option for his team if things in L.A. don't work out" (CBSSPORTS.com, 11/11). In L.A., Nathan Fenno writes under the header, "Inglewood Vs. Carson NFL Stadium: Which One's Better?" The projects "present starkly different visions of what the NFL's return to the country's second-largest market could look like" (L.A. TIMES, 11/12). VICE SPORTS' Neil DeMause wrote under the header, "Is The NFL Really About To Move Back To L.A.? Yes, No, And Maybe" (VICESPORTS.com, 11/11).
