Stan Kroenke

Goodell “Disappointed” In Chargers’ Move

January 26th, 2017 at 2:01pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Chargers’ decision to leave their longtime home, San Diego, in favor of Los Angeles has drawn the ire of the NFL’s owners, many of whom are reportedly “very upset.” Commissioner Roger Goodell isn’t thrilled, either, as he told FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd on Thursday that the league is “disappointed” in Chargers owner Dean Spanos’ choice to relocate. Goodell added that the league “did some unprecedented things to try to keep the Chargers in San Diego,” though he didn’t elaborate further (via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk).

One option would have been for Rams owner Stan Kroenke to help pay for a stadium in San Diego, which would have enabled him to keep the Los Angeles market to himself, a league source told Florio. The Chargers still wouldn’t have gotten enough public money for a new facility to come to fruition, however, Florio notes.

On the other hand, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report disputes the idea of Kroenke’s involvement, tweeting that he never offered to help the Chargers remain in San Diego. Had he done so, Kroenke would have had to pay more for his Inglewood stadium, and he could have opened up the LA market to the Raiders – something he didn’t want to do (Twitter links).

Regardless of what went on behind the scenes, the LA situation is settled. The Raiders’ future isn’t, though the franchise did file its relocation papers last week to move from Oakland to Las Vegas. The Mark Davis-led organization remains hopeful about casino magnate Sheldon Adelson’s involvement in a potential stadium, per Cole, who adds that Adelson believes contributing $650MM toward the planned $1.9 billion facility “would aid his legacy.” If Adelson doesn’t end up in the mix, Goldman Sachs would likely pick up the slack, according to Cole. However, whether it’s Adelson or Goldman Sachs helping him, Davis will need 23 of the league’s other 31 owners to sign off on his relocation plan in March. That’s “hardly a formality,” Cole relays (all Twitter links).

On the possibility of placing a team in America’s gambling capital, Goodell told Cowherd (via PFT’s Michael David Smith): “We’ve seen the changes in the culture around the country in gambling. We’re obviously very sensitive to that, but we’re also going to evaluate the Raiders case on the relocation application in what’s in the overall best interests of the league. But one thing we can’t ever do is compromise on the game. That’s one of the things we’ll do is to make sure the policies we’ve created, if we did in any way approve the Raiders, I don’t see us compromising on any of the policies.”

Extra Points: Rams, 49ers, Jets, Draft

December 27th, 2016 at 9:41pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Rams owner Stan Kroenke only relocated the franchise from St. Louis to Los Angeles last winter, but his plan to swap Missouri for California went back several years, ex-head coach Jeff Fisher told ESPN Radio (via Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). On taking the Rams’ head coaching job in 2012, Fisher recalled, “I decided on L.A., or St. Louis, at the time, knowing that there was going to be a pending move.”

Fallout From Chargers’ 2016 Decision

January 29th, 2016 at 9:04pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

In response to Dean Spanos’ decision on Friday to keep the Chargers in San Diego for at least another season, Mayor Kevin Faulconer and Ron Roberts of the County Board of Supervisors jointly issued a statement (Twitter link via Faulconer):

“We appreciate Mr. Spanos’ commitment to staying in San Diego for the 2016 season to work with the region on a stadium solution. We look forward to discussing his vision for a new San Diego home for the Chargers, and will be working with him and our negotiating team on a fair and viable plan to put before voters. We have agreed to meet again in the near future.”

Rams owner Stan Kroenke, whom Spanos could eventually join in Los Angeles if he’s unable to reach an agreement with San Diego, also released a statement (Twitter links – 1, 2, 3 – courtesy of the LA Daily News’ Vincent Bonsignore):

“The Los Angeles Rams have reached an agreement with the San Diego Chargers to join us in the new Inglewood Stadium. If they choose to exercise their option to relocate within the next year, we look forward to partnering with the Chargers in Inglewood, but the decision of course is Dean’s to make.”

Spanos’ decision to stay or leave will obviously come down to whether he can get a new stadium built in San Diego. The Chargers would prefer their next venue be a joint stadium and convention center in downtown San Diego, reports ESPN’s Eric D. Williams, who notes that the team isn’t a fan of its current location, Mission Valley.

In an effort to move forward on their stadium/convention center plan, the Chargers are expected to create a citizens’ initiative in San Diego for a November ballot, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). If the Chargers get the necessary 60,000 signatures from voters, that would enable them to bypass requirements set by the California Environmental Quality Act, per Cole. Should the Bolts get their initiative on the ballot this year, the deadline on their LA decision could extend to 2018, write Kevin Acee and David Garrick of the San Diego Union-Tribune, and the extra year would allow for legal challenges or a second election.

Regardless of what happens long term, we know the Chargers will spend the 2016 season in San Diego, which has seemingly caused mixed reactions among some of their players. While franchise quarterback Philip Rivers is excited – “It’s good to know we get to make another run at it here,” he said, per Michael Gehlken of the Union-Tribune – a couple of his teammates came off as less enthusiastic about the news, even tweeting ultimatums to the club’s fans.

“The stadium better be packed. The fans got what they wanted,” receiver Keenan Allen wrote.

“Every home game better be sold out,” linebacker Melvin Ingram added.

According to ESPN’s attendance numbers, the Chargers had the 18th-most fans (a total of 534,180) at their games during the 2015-16 season and finished 22nd in capacity percentage (94.6). The figures rank as the Chargers’ highest in both categories since 2009.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

West Notes: Berry, Hali, Seahawks, Rams

January 18th, 2016 at 9:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

As expected, Andy Reid didn’t do much prioritizing when it came to pinpointing which of the Chiefs‘ free agents will return, but he did single out the one likely residing at the top of the itinerary.

“I think he wants to be here. We want him to be here. The agents and our people need to get with him, they’ll deal with all that, work through all that. But I like Eric Berry. I can tell you, I love Eric Berry,” Reid told media, including Dave Skretta of the Associated Press.

Berry will be the top safety on the market and one of the top players available as an unrestricted free agent. The Pro Bowl safety played out his entire rookie contract, a six-year deal worth $60MM, from the old CBA that was much friendlier to first-round selections.

“Obviously,” Berry told media, when asked if he wants to return to the Chiefs. “This is family. At the same time, we’ll sit down and talk about it when we talk about it. But right now I’m just thankful for my teammates, my coaches and everybody that has something to do with me being back on the field this year. This is something special.”

The Chiefs could have their franchise tag ready if talks with the 27-year-old cancer survivor stall. The remainder of the Chiefs’ free agent class includes a number of expiring deals from their top-flight defense. Sean Smith, Derrick Johnson, Tamba Hali and Jaye Howard are free agents.

Kansas City possess $31.62MM in salary cap space, according to OverTheCap.

Here is the latest coming out of the Western divisions.

Hali’s path may lead to retirement or back to Kansas City, with Skretta noting it’s unlikely the 32-year-old outside linebacker will head elsewhere. The former first-round pick and career Chief told media after the Chiefs’ loss to the Patriots he would contemplate his future after spending most of this season not practicing due to knee trouble. Hali renegotiated his deal last season to help Kansas City with its cap. Of course, with the Chiefs having some lucrative free agents to consider retaining in hopes of keeping that strong defense intact, Hali’s third Chiefs contract won’t be nearly as hefty as the five year, $60MM deal he signed in 2011. Though Hali, a Pro Bowler this season and a top-10 edge player as graded by Pro Football Focus, could still command a reasonable accord on the open market if he sought such a path. “I know some of these (free agents) are going to return. That’s how it rolls. Which ones and how it works into the (salary) cap and all that, that’s (GM John) Dorsey‘s baby there,” Reid said.
The Chiefs will have their lowest first-round pick in 20 years after their 11-5 season ended in the divisional playoffs. They will pick 28th, lowest of the teams eliminated this weekend, according to Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk. The Steelers, Seahawks and Packers will pick 25th, 26th and 27th, respectively, based on a schedule strength tiebreaker.
Bruce Irvin told media, including Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com, he will take less money on his second contract to stay with the Seahawks. Irvin said both John Schneider and Pete Carroll asked him if he’d accept a below-market deal Monday. “Pete and John asked me that when I met with them today. If it came to that, I would definitely come back. $3, $4 million? $3, $4, $5 million? I would definitely come back because I’m established here,” Irvin said. The Seahawks did not pick up Irvin’s fifth-year option last year, making the edge-rusher an unrestricted free agent. The January gesture may not hold a lot of weight come March, per Joel Corry of CBSSports.com, who tweets Irvin’s agent, Joel Segal, won’t be interested in seeing Irvin take a hometown discount after he pushed the Chiefs to give Justin Houston a record deal last summer. Russell Okung, Jeremy Lane and Jermaine Kearse are among the Seahawks’ notable UFAs, with Marshawn Lynch‘s $6.5MM in cap savings likely to benefit toward this cause as well.
Carroll told media, including Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times, he’d like to bring back Christine Michael, a UFA who bounced around this year before re-signing with Seattle. Michael averaged 4.9 yards per carry with the Seahawks and 3.4 per rush with the Cowboys this season.
Stan Kroenke is borrowing approximately $1 billion from JPMorgan Chase for his new Inglewood stadium, Daniel Kaplan of Sports Business Daily tweets. The stadium’s expected to cost a record $2.7 billion, and Kroenke’s $1 billion loan would represent one of the largest ever taken for a stadium, according to Elyse Glickman of the Los Angeles Business Journal.

West Notes: Los Angeles, 49ers, Maclin

January 16th, 2016 at 3:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Carson presentation drew laughs from the owners once Disney Chairman Robert Iger mentioned how he’d paid the owners plenty of money over the years. That comment, and a Jerry Jones joke following Iger’s exit from the room, helped escalate the downward-trending Carson initiative’s demise, according to Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times.

“He said he paid us. Last time I checked, that money is coming from Disney shareholders, not him,” Jones told his fellow owners during Tuesday’s relocation summit in Houston, per Farmer.

The owners voted 19-13 on whether their votes would be secret. After two votes, the Inglewood project received 21, three shy of the majority needed to relocate the Rams.

Roger Goodell then ushered Stan Kroenke, Dean Spanos and Mark Davis into a private room for an hour-long negotiation. Upon the trio’s return, Davis announced the Raiders were pulling out of the race, Farmer reports. The agreement that gives the Chargers a one-year window to decide on relocating to Inglewood had been discussed for more than six months.

Farmer also notes Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, who had been vocal about his support for the Carson project and helped attach Iger to it, was silent most of the day.

Here is some more on Los Angeles and the latest on the Western-stationed franchises.

With economists estimating the Chargers can expect three to five times more revenue in Los Angeles than in San Diego, a source tells Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune “at least 10 teams” would be lining up to take the joint-tenant deal in Inglewood if the Chargers wouldn’t. Acee also reports there’s talk of a bit more than the $100MM the NFL offered to help keep the Raiders and Chargers in their respective cities available to the Chargers if they were to make things work in San Diego. Spanos could leverage San Diego with the deal the Chargers would be in line to receive alongside the Rams if in fact San Diego is serious about keeping the franchise, Acee writes. But San Diego now will entertain the notion of bringing another team to the city.
Patriots president Jonathan Kraft said Kroenke will be spending between $3 billion and $3.5 billion to relocate the Rams, factoring in the $550MM relocation fee and the Rams’ new stadium (via Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, on Twitter).
Several members of the 49ers‘ staff from last season has reportedly packed up and moved their things out of the team’s facility, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com reports (on Twitter). Chip Kelly met with defensive coordinator Eric Mangini, per Maiocco, but the future of the San Francisco coaching staff is highly uncertain at this point. Kelly will meet with running backs coach Tom Rathman next week, Maiocco tweets. The former 49ers fullback’s been on the 49ers’ staff since 2009 and had to instruct one of the most injury-ravaged units in the NFL this season.
Former Eagles quarterbacks coach Ryan Day is under consideration for the job of 49ers offensive coordinator, ESPN reports (via Maiocco). A former New Hampshire player under Kelly, Day joined Kelly with the Eagles last season after being Boston College’s OC in 2013-14.
Both Eagles defensive line coaches, Jerry Azzinaro and Mike Dawson, are the most likely coaches to follow Kelly from Philadelphia, Maiocco reports. Azzinaro’s been Kelly’s D-line coach for the past seven seasons, doing so at Oregon from 2009-12 and with the Eagles since 2013.
Maiocco also reports (via Twitter) the 49ers could be considering Buccaneers tight ends coach Jon Embree for a spot on their staff if Dirk Koetter doesn’t retain him. The Colorado head coach in 2011-12, the 50-year-old Embree’s coached tight ends for the Chiefs, Washington, Browns and Bucs since 2006. He’s been with Tampa Bay since 2014.
A mutual interest in acquiring players with length and size could help Kelly and GM Trent Baalke work well together with the 49ers, the San Francisco Chronicle’s Eric Branch notes.
The Chiefs declared Jeremy Maclin active for today’s game against the Patriots, but their top wideout reportedly had trouble walking during the week of preparation, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Maclin did not practice this week due to the high-ankle sprain he suffered last Saturday against the Texans.

Q&A With Rams Owner Stan Kroenke

January 13th, 2016 at 6:06pm CST by Zachary Links

Finally, football is headed back to the city of Los Angeles. Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who is historically very camera shy, appeared in front of reporters on Tuesday night after NFL owners voted 30-2 in favor of his Inglewood, California project. After that, he chatted with Sam Farmer and Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times about his team’s impending move. Here’s a look at some of the highlights:

On his rationale for revamping the defunct Hollywood Park racetrack:

If we didn’t have the perspective of 40 years of doing this, I don’t think any reasonable, rational person would ever do this. But, because we look at it a certain way, we’ve been through so many of these projects, and we’re long-term investors. That’s why we did what we did and stuck our neck out that far.

On the importance of computer approximations of the new stadium in his proposal:

One of the most important things that nailed it (Tuesday) is that we just kept showing them pictures. People love pictures. And what those pictures showed was the thought and the development and the plan, and the depth of the thought.

On the attendance of Seahawks owner and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen at the meetings in Houston and his support (Prior to Tuesday, Allen had not been in attendance for an NFL meeting in four years):

When I started working on this two years ago, I took Paul through the whole thing. I said, ‘This is what I think we can do here. I’m not sure we can do it all, but here’s what we’re working on.’ He was always interested. Then once we got to certain point, he definitely got it. He got how good it was.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NFL Owners Expect Chargers To Move To L.A.

January 13th, 2016 at 11:39am CST by Luke Adams

With the Rams set to move to Los Angeles for the 2016 season, the Chargers now face a decision on whether or not to join them. The team will have just over two months to come up with a plan for 2016, but according to multiple reports, NFL owners expect Dean Spanos‘ franchise to ultimately make the move to Inglewood.

While Spanos will have to overcome the initial shock of losing out on the Carson project, the thinking among owners is that, once he has a chance to process the Inglewood opportunity, he’ll “pounce,” writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. According to Florio, the Chargers have already begun working directly with the league to finalize the parameters of an Inglewood deal.

That detail is important — as Florio notes, the NFL will be involved in the negotiations, if necessary. Stan Kroenke has reportedly promised the rest of the league’s owners that he’ll be reasonable and won’t play hardball when it comes to taking on a partner – or a tenant – and it sounds like the NFL will be keeping a close eye on the situation to make sure the talks go smoothly.

Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com and Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune also suggest it’s more likely that the Chargers will make the move to L.A. rather than staying in San Diego. Acee tweets that, at best, it’s 50/50 that the team will try to make a go of it in San Diego, and he acknowledges that even that estimate may be optimistic. “99 out of 100 would take this [Inglewood] deal,” one source tells Florio.

It’s still possible that Spanos will have the Chargers play at least one more year in San Diego in the hopes that the city can improve its stadium proposal by the end of 2016. But there are plenty of incentives for Kroenke and the Rams to try to secure a partner in Inglewood sooner rather than later.

As Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reported earlier today, and as Florio confirms, the Rams can’t sell PSLs and stadium naming rights, among other things, until February 15, 2017, unless they bring a second team aboard before then. If they were to strike a deal with the Chargers, the Rams can begin selling those premium products right away.

Florio passes along a couple other items of note related to the L.A. situation, writing that owners were “blown away” by the Inglewood presentation in Houston, with one source suggesting that if the Inglewood proposal was like watching Star Wars, the Carson plan was like watching “a home movie from the ’70s.” Florio also reports that there’s a strong belief Bengals owner Mike Brown was one of two owners who voted against the Inglewood plan.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Los Angeles Rumors: 1/11/16

January 11th, 2016 at 3:12pm CST by Luke Adams

3:12pm: A consensus is building within the league for the Rams and Chargers to share a stadium in Inglewood, according to Sam Farmer and Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times. Multiple league officials and owners not involved with either the Inglewood or Carson proposals have made note of that momentum, with one owner (whose preference hasn’t been previously reported or stated) telling the Times that the Carson plan isn’t even close to being as strong as Inglewood’s.

According to Farmer and Fenno, league insiders think Chargers owner Dean Spanos doesn’t want to have to turn his back on a partner – Mark Davis and the Raiders – but there’s a belief that the issue can be resolved during this week’s meetings in Houston.

While the majority of owners favor a plan that would land the Rams and Raiders in Inglewood, one owner acknowledged that “we just can’t solve all three stadium problems in one fell swoop.” So this week’s discussion will be crucial, as the NFL’s 32 owners debate how to clear some of the hurdles involved in the plan.

11:34am: The NFL’s team owners are meeting in Houston this week to discuss the Los Angeles situation, and in a perfect world, a vote would take place on Wednesday to determine the fate of the Rams, Chargers, and Raiders. However, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, there’s a chance that owners could postpone that vote in order to finalize the details of their preferred outcome.

Florio cites a source with “intimate knowledge of the dynamics” who says there’s a 25% or 30% chance of that vote being postponed, perhaps for a few weeks at most, which means it’s still more likely than not that some sort of resolution is agreed upon in the coming days. But no matter what solution the NFL’s owners decide, there figure to be plenty of roadblocks to overcome, particularly if the league wants to move forward with a new proposal like the one Jerry Jones has reportedly suggested.

As we wait to see what happens in Houston this week, here are a few more details to keep in mind:

For a Rams/Chargers partnership to work, Chargers owner Dean Spanos would have to overcome his distrust for Rams owner Stan Kroenke, and would have to believe that Kroenke would give the Chargers a fair shot if they play in Inglewood, says Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link).
Additionally, a Rams/Chargers team-up would put the Raiders in an interesting spot. In his previously-linked piece, Florio suggests that Mark Davis‘ franchise would benefit from the deal enough financially that it would be more viable for the team to build a new stadium, presumably in Oakland. However, Cole indicates that Davis and the Raiders may resume their exploration of a move to San Antonio if the team’s L.A. plan falls through. According to Cole (video link), Davis has a parcel of land between San Antonio and Austin that could house a stadium, and Jerry Jones may not have as much leverage to keep another franchise out of Texas if he essentially helped push that franchise out of its L.A. deal.
Peter King of TheMMQB.com reports a few interesting Los Angeles nuggets in his latest column, writing that the Chargers are “heavy favorites” to move to L.A., and would likely be one of two teams to relocate. According to King, the NFL would allow teams to pay the $550MM relocation fee at a rate of $64.5MM annually over 10 years, which obviously accounts for interest.
King also weighs in on the issue of the odd team out, suggesting that if the Rams and Chargers move to L.A., the Raiders would be set up with “one of the most golden of parachutes.” As an official familiar with the league’s thinking explains: “Whoever is not going to Los Angeles will be generously taken care of. The league will create a safety net for that team.” If that’s the case, the franchise may not need to create extra leverage by exploring a relocation to San Antonio, as noted above.

Latest On NFL’s Potential Return To LA

January 9th, 2016 at 7:00pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

A return to Los Angeles in 2016 is looking likelier than ever for the NFL. In a 48-page report distributed Saturday to the league’s 32 teams, commissioner Roger Goodell criticizes the respective stadium proposals in St. Louis, Oakland and San Diego, referring to them as “unsatisfactory and inadequate,” according to the LA Times’ Sam Farmer and Nathan Fenno. Further, in the opinion of Goodell, each market had “ample opportunity but did not develop their proposals sufficiently to ensure the retention of its NFL team.” The Rams, Raiders and Chargers agree, having applied for LA relocation earlier this week.

Last month, the city of St. Louis approved financing on a plan to construct a $1.1 billion riverfront stadium. That proposal includes $300MM from the league, whose policy is to spend a maximum of $200MM on stadiums. Goodell subsequently called the notion of using $300MM of the league’s money “fundamentally inconsistent with the NFL’s program of stadium financing.” The Rams, for their part, said in their application to move that no NFL team would accept the St. Louis deal, Farmer and Fenno write.

Oakland has not made a formal stadium proposal, on the other hand, while San Diego – like St. Louis – has proposed a $1.1 billion stadium. At $200MM in funding from the NFL, the potential San Diego stadium doesn’t exceed the league’s maximum. The problem is that a public vote to OK $350MM of city funding isn’t scheduled until June. That clearly won’t work, as league owners will gather next week in Houston – Jan. 12-13 – to vote on possible relocation.

The Raiders and Chargers have a proposal to share a stadium in Carson, and the Rams want their own facility in Inglewood. In order for any of the teams to move, they’ll need 24 approval votes from league ownership. Goodell’s report indicates LA is capable of supporting two teams, which ostensibly helps both the Chargers and Raiders. However, the Cowboys have proposed a measure for ownership vote that would see the Chargers head to Inglewood with the Rams instead of Carson with the Raiders, CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reports (Twitter link). La Canfora adds (on Twitter) that many owners would prefer to see the Rams and Chargers as the two LA-bound teams. However, as Daniel Kaplan of the Sports Business Journal points out (via Twitter), Chargers owner Dean Spanos rejected the idea of partnering with Rams owner Stan Kroenke in a letter to the LA committee last month. At least for now, Spanos seems committed to teaming with the Raiders’ Mark Davis.

For any potential LA scenario to come to fruition, all three clubs must sign final economic term sheets for relocation by Monday, per La Canfora (Twitter link).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Chargers’ Los Angeles Pursuit

January 2nd, 2016 at 4:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chargers and San Diego may be on incompatible timelines.

A looming June 2016 election will have a significant impact on whether San Diego can invest in a new stadium, but the Los Angeles relocation matter may be decided by then, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.

San Diego’s latest proposal hinges on $350MM coming from the city, but a public vote scheduled for June will determine whether that money is available. The league’s relocation meeting comes in less than two weeks.

Funding for a prospective new Chargers venue costing upwards of $1.1 billion would, per this plan, come from the NFL providing $200MM, the Chargers paying $363MM and personal seat license sales accounting for $187MM.

As Florio notes, in the unlikely event the Chargers decide to wait on this vote passing, the measure failing to do so could well mean the Chargers would be shut out of the Los Angeles race and forced to remain in their near-50-year-old stadium. But with the Chargers very much in the LA pursuit, such passivity would be unexpected.

Rams owner Stan Kroenke is reportedly pushing for a one-year delay in this derby in hopes of this June vote showing the Chargers have a more viable stadium plan than the Rams do in St. Louis, Florio offers. St. Louis, however, appears further along than San Diego or Oakland in its stadium efforts.

The Chargers not waiting and securing approval to relocate Jan. 13 would mean San Diego would be voting on the above legislation to lure another team to the city.

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