Factions inside the NFL are “workshopping ways to keep” the Chargers in San Diego, according to sources cited in a front-page piece by Kevin Acee of the SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. The sources “did not provide details but suggested the solutions could include additional money by way of a friendly loan, NFL investment in a stadium development and/or the guarantee of two Super Bowls in a short period of time.” One team owner said, “We have to decide how badly we as a league want the San Diego market. I think there is considerable sentiment that we do.” Acee notes the "widespread belief is that it is not too late to get something done but that it is almost too late for the sides to not be actively involved in negotiations.” There was “curiosity among those who had heard about the offer of a 99-year lease at $1 per year and what it might mean.” But the league would “require more specifics about what more the city is willing to offer before truly engaging.” This week’s NFL owners' meeting in Dallas is the final time Chargers Chair Dean Spanos is “scheduled to be with his fellow owners before the Jan. 15 deadline to declare his intentions” regarding a potential move to L.A. (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 12/14). PRO FOOTBALL TALK’s Mike Florio cited a source as saying that the 99-year, $1 lease offer is "too little, too late, and ultimately too infuriating.” Spanos views this push as an “effort to embarrass him and his family and to deflect blame for a relocation from the politicians via a last-minute proposal.” A source said, “If the goal was to infuriate the single remaining decision-maker in this process, mission accomplished.” Florio noted the “low rent makes for a good headline, but the Chargers would be required to operate and maintain the stadium” (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 12/13).
