The NFL is headed "back to the nation's second-largest market" after team owners last night voted 30-2 to allow the Rams to move to L.A. for the '16 season and to give the Chargers a "one-year option to join" them in Inglewood, according to a front-page piece by Farmer & Fenno of the L.A. TIMES. If the Chargers "do not exercise their right to move to Inglewood by Jan. 15, 2017, the Raiders will have a one-year option to join the Rams." The league will give the Chargers and the Raiders each $100M "to put toward new stadiums if they stay in their current home markets." No public money "will be used to build the Inglewood stadium." Chargers Chair Dean Spanos and Raiders Owner Mark Davis joined Rams Owner Stan Kroenke on stage during Goodell's news conference, and all "were subdued and looked fatigued after meetings that started" at 9:00am CT and broke around 8:00pm. Until the stadium is complete, the Rams "are expected to play at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum." If the Chargers "decide to relocate, it's unclear where they will play" (L.A. TIMES, 1/13). NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reported the Chargers "will have up until the conclusion of owners meetings (March 20-23) to decide if they're playing in L.A. or San Diego" in '16. The window "creates the possibility -- however slight -- that the Chargers could remain in San Diego." The city "is hosting a June vote" for $350M in public funding toward a new facility to replace Qualcomm Stadium, and it is possible that the Chargers "put off a final decision until that vote takes place" (NFL.com, 1/12). In Boston, Ben Volin notes the NFL "is expected to fetch" a $550M relocation fee from the Rams and any other team that moves to L.A. (BOSTON GLOBE, 1/13).
HOW THE DEAL WAS MADE: USA TODAY's Brent Schrotenboer reports the NFL yesterday "nixed the idea of the Rams moving into the Inglewood project by themselves and instead essentially gave the owners two ballot choices" -- the Raiders and Chargers in Carson or the Rams and Chargers in Inglewood. The owners "favored the latter plan even though it came with considerable potential hang-ups" (USA TODAY, 1/13). The TIMES' Farmer & Fenno note a solution "became imminent when owners were presented with the option of the Rams and a team to be determined at Inglewood." That received 20 votes in the first balloting, "four shy of the 24 needed to pass, and 21 on the second vote." The outcome "appeared inevitable to owners, prompting Goodell to pull aside Davis and Spanos and begin negotiating an exit." Before the final vote, Davis "agreed to stay in Oakland for now and Spanos' options dwindled," leaving a "clear choice for the owners." In the end, a "tight race between the projects that had stretched almost a year became a landslide" (L.A. TIMES, 1/13). In N.Y., Gary Myers notes Davis "wants to stay in Oakland but there has not even been a stadium proposal by the city" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 1/13). Before the vote was taken, the league's six-member L.A. committee formally recommended the Carson site over Inglewood. Chiefs Chair & CEO Clark Hunt was the only committee member who "voted against relocation." Hunt said that he was "opposed to any team relocating" to L.A. He also indicated that relocation to Los Angeles "should be for only one team" (OCREGISTER.com, 1/12).
NEW MONEY VS. OLD MONEY: USA TODAY's Jarrett Bell reports money "apparently loomed as a key element fueling a line of demarcation" among the owners. Bell: "That struck me as the most divisive issue among owners since they bickered over a revised revenue-sharing formula a few years ago." Kroenke "had key supporters" in Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones and Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross, both with "estimated personal net worth ... in the top seven among NFL owners." Spanos was said to have had strong support from "an overwhelming number of owners with franchises that have been in their families for generations." The fact that the process "dragged on" without a clear front-runner "lent credence to the theory of a definitive divide" (USA TODAY, 1/13). ESPN's Andrew Brandt said there was a "lot of sentiment towards the Chargers" moving to L.A., but the decision came down to "money over heart." Brandt: "This was clearly a proposal where I would call the moneyed owners ... were all behind this” ("SportsCenter," ESPN, 1/12). In DC, Mark Maske cites sources as saying that the Chargers had the "strongest support from the owners among the three teams that applied for relocation" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/13).
RARE MOVE TO DISCARD RECOMMENDATION: THE MMQB's Peter King said the move away from Carson to Inglewood despite the recommendation from the L.A. committee was due in part to a switch to a "secret ballot" for the vote. A source said, “The key was changing from public to secret ballots. The reversal of support (from Carson to Inglewood) from what Dean expected shocked him. And absolutely the 21 votes for Inglewood was a shock.” King noted the "lack of support for Carson once the ballots went secret was very surprising," as backing "evaporated in a flash." Another source said that a second factor was due to the "quality of Kroenke’s proposal for a 298-acre stadium site and its amenities." One club exec said that the "inclusion of a new campus for NFL media -- NFL Network, NFL digital ventures and NFL.com, including a theater for premieres of NFL-produced programming and documentaries and films -- was a big factor in swaying so many owners to the Kroenke side" (MMQB.SI.com, 1/13). Brandt wrote in a "'normal' voting situation," a committee's recommendation would carry significant weight towards a winning vote" (MMQB.SI.com, 1/12). Former Raiders exec Amy Trask wrote on Twitter, “During my years in the league, I can count on one hand (w/fingers left to spare), the number of times that the recommendation of a committee & in those instances, the issue was tabled, rather than voted upon, while accommodations were made” (TWITTER.com, 1/13).
OWNER REACTIONS: CBSSPORTS.com's Jason La Canfora noted Goodell "was among the few overtly happy people" following the meeting. Davis "was angry at times and Spanos seemed dazed and crestfallen." Meanwhile, Kroenke was "downright morose for a man who had just been granted the keys to the NFL's ultimate kingdom." The biggest smiles "were on the faces of the other owners." Patriots Owner Robert Kraft was "nearly strutting as he headed to his limo." He gave a thumbs up and said, "This is a great solution." Giants Chair & Exec VP Steve Tisch "raved about the Inglewood location." He said, "I am very happy with the result; I've lived in Los Angeles for 45 years" (CBSSPORTS.com, 1/12). Steelers President Art Rooney II: "We're excited that we got something done. It was time to get a franchise back to Los Angeles. And it was time we got this situation resolved and get a program in place for the other communities to continue to work to keep their franchise" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/13). In California, Jim Alexander writes Spanos "seemed unhappy when he stood before cameras and microphones" last night, "reading a prepared statement and taking one question before bailing out of the news conference" (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 1/13). THE MMQB's King reported following last night's vote, the owners gave Kroenke a "warm ovation." King: "That's stunning in itself, because of the fractious nature of the multiyear relocation process and the enmity Kroenke engendered among some owners who felt St. Louis was a perfectly fine market willing to bend over backwards to keep its NFL franchise" (MMQB.SI.com, 1/13).
