LA NFL franchise

[Lee.]

I think right now, the best chance to move is the Jaguars. They have poor attendance, play in a remodeled college stadium (they could get the same thing in LA, with something to strive for at least, and more money) and have an owner (Weaver) who doesn't seem all that committed to the city of Jacksonville. Calling it is what it is, Jacksonville at best seems to be a college town, where the Jaguars will be second to the Gators and never be a big draw.

Let me throw an interesting, "never say never" scenario at y'all. Consider these factors:

1. Wayne Weaver also happens to have some St. Louis connections going back to his International Shoe Co. days.

2. Rams' majority owner Georgia Frontiere and team president John Shaw both maintain their principal residences in Southern California.

3. The Rams' lease with the Edward Jones Dome is riddled with exploitable loopholes.

4. The Rams' 87 game home sellout streak ended last week and for the first time ever the team refused to repurchase the unsold ticket inventory in order to guarantee the game would be broadcast locally.

It wouldn't surprise me to see some sort of machinations unfold whereby a group of SoCal investors buys out minoirty owner Stan Kroenke (who would then be able to concentrate exclusively on his Denver-based NBA and NHL holdings) and returns the Rams to Los Angeles; and Weaver moves the Jags to St. Louis. The NFC West certainly makes more regional sense and the AFC South suddenly has a regional rivalry in STL-Indy, another regional, "Super Bowl cities rematch" rivalry with Tennessee and a "these cities already have a great baseball rivalry" rivalry with Houston. Neither franchise has to deal with name changes, uniform changes or logo changes either, meaning a deal could probably get done at practically any time with a minimal amount of changes needing to be made to their appearances or promotional materials.

What are the odds on this scenario actually playing out? I'd put it at 5% tops, but it's still not entirely inconceivable.

You brilliant, magnificent, aromatic Jew.

[PackerBadger]

That scenario isn't that crazy. If the NFL can allow the Cleveland Browns to move to Baltimore (replacing the Colts, who moved to Indianapolis) and then create a new "Cleveland Browns" franchise, they could approve this. For that matter, franchise-switching isn't that unusual, even in the NFL -- in the early 1970s, the Colts and Rams switched owners, with Colts owner Carroll Rosenbloom becoming Rams owner Carroll Rosenbloom. (I'd note that Georgia Frontiere is Carroll's widow, but you knew that.)

[wingedwheel]

Los Angeles is called the City of Angels, so I think the Saints name can fit.

If they can get the Jaguars to move, changing the name to Leopards would be my vote.

[WideRight]

Actually, If I were LA and got the Jags, I would keept the name. It ties in well with the Mexican community.

Aztec warriors were always either Jaguar warriors or Eagle warriors, so a Jaguar team in LA could be a good way to connect, they would just have to play that up a little.

[doctorpeligro]

It looks likely that LA will get a relocated franchise, and not an expansion team. If that is what happens, it is unlikely that they get a new name.

Unless it is the Chargers or the Raiders moving to L.A., a franchise relocating to L.A. would almost certainly change their nickname.

The most likely teams to move: Chargers, Bills, Colts, Saints, Raiders, Vikings.

Not to be too mean, but the fact that you thought the Colts were still looking for a new home suggests that you haven't been paying attention to the issue for the last couple of years.

Minnesota may get a Browns deal, but New Orleans, which

would very likely never get an NFL team again (due to shrinkage of market after Katrina), could lose the Saints name.

It is VERY unlikely that the NFL will allow the Saints to leave New Orleans. It would be a public relations disaster the likes of which the league has never seen.

But, here is what I would do:

1. EXPAND BY 2 TEAMS: 1 in LA and 1 in Anaheim. That's right, give them 2 teams.

There will NOT be two new football stadia in Greater Los Angeles. This is well known by people who have been paying attention to news reports about the NFL's situation in L.A. In fact, due to rising costs, there is a decent chance that a new football stadium won't be built in Los Angeles unless two teams commit to play in it. Here's a good article from espn.com about it. And this isn't a new article, either.

[averyj]

Genius! Haha.

[RebelKnight29]

I still say bring back the old LA Express from the USFL

but hey, thats just me talkin

[Gothamite]

I think right now, the best chance to move is the Jaguars. They have poor attendance, play in a remodeled college stadium (they could get the same thing in LA, with something to strive for at least, and more money) and have an owner (Weaver) who doesn't seem all that committed to the city of Jacksonville. Calling it is what it is, Jacksonville at best seems to be a college town, where the Jaguars will be second to the Gators and never be a big draw.

Let me throw an interesting, "never say never" scenario at y'all. Consider these factors:

1. Wayne Weaver also happens to have some St. Louis connections going back to his International Shoe Co. days.

2. Rams' majority owner Georgia Frontiere and team president John Shaw both maintain their principal residences in Southern California.

3. The Rams' lease with the Edward Jones Dome is riddled with exploitable loopholes.

4. The Rams' 87 game home sellout streak ended last week and for the first time ever the team refused to repurchase the unsold ticket inventory in order to guarantee the game would be broadcast locally.

It wouldn't surprise me to see some sort of machinations unfold whereby a group of SoCal investors buys out minoirty owner Stan Kroenke (who would then be able to concentrate exclusively on his Denver-based NBA and NHL holdings) and returns the Rams to Los Angeles; and Weaver moves the Jags to St. Louis. The NFC West certainly makes more regional sense and the AFC South suddenly has a regional rivalry in STL-Indy, another regional, "Super Bowl cities rematch" rivalry with Tennessee and a "these cities already have a great baseball rivalry" rivalry with Houston. Neither franchise has to deal with name changes, uniform changes or logo changes either, meaning a deal could probably get done at practically any time with a minimal amount of changes needing to be made to their appearances or promotional materials.

What are the odds on this scenario actually playing out? I'd put it at 5% tops, but it's still not entirely inconceivable.

Sheer brilliance. That's why it'll never happen - it makes way too much sense.

What's the latest on the Jags for this season? Did they improve their attendance at all?

[RickV]

It is VERY unlikely that the NFL will allow the Saints to leave New Orleans. It would be a public relations disaster the likes of which the league has never seen.

I don't know about that. If the Colts left Baltimore, the Rams left LA, and especially if the Browns left Cleveland then what's to stop the Saints from leaving New Orleans under the right circumstances? All of the above moves were "public relations" nightmares and the NFL just kept on chugging along and is more popular than it has EVER been. Don't kid yourself. The NFL is a business, and if makes business sense for the Saints to leave, trust me, they will leave.

[Puck]

It is VERY unlikely that the NFL will allow the Saints to leave New Orleans. It would be a public relations disaster the likes of which the league has never seen.

I don't know about that. If the Colts left Baltimore, the Rams left LA, and especially if the Browns left Cleveland then what's to stop the Saints from leaving New Orleans under the right circumstances? All of the above moves were "public relations" nightmares and the NFL just kept on chugging along and is more popular than it has EVER been. Don't kid yourself. The NFL is a business, and if makes business sense for the Saints to leave, trust me, they will leave.

I think you miss the fact that the NFL was trying to establish itself as a humanitarian entity would be RUINED by having the franchise there up and leave after Katrina.

[Gothamite]

Agreed.

The Rams leaving LA is in no way the public relations nightmare that the Saints leaving New Orleans at this particular time would be. Not even close.

[neo_prankster]

After further review of this whole LA situation the NFL is faced with, I think the NFL is going to have to either move the Saints or the Chargers, or, the League can expand to 40 teams and still have a perfect alignment.

[RickV]

Agreed.

The Rams leaving LA is in no way the public relations nightmare that the Saints leaving New Orleans at this particular time would be. Not even close.

I'd maybe agree if Benson had tried to move the Saints immediately after Katrina, but in another year or two, if he's not happy financially, he can say "Hey, I gave N.O. a few years to recover and it just didn't work". By the way, do you all remember what Roger Godell said about the Saints when he took office. He said something to the effect of "let's celebrate now, and we'll see about tomorrow". That is less than a ringing, rock solid endorsement in my book.

[PackerBadger]

After further review of this whole LA situation the NFL is faced with, I think the NFL is going to have to either move the Saints or the Chargers, or, the League can expand to 40 teams and still have a perfect alignment.

Add EIGHT teams? If that happens, we'll all be employed designing their logos and jerseys. Also, you'd have to add four games to the schedule: (1+2) two games within your division, (3) another game in the other division in your conference, and (4) another game in the division in the other conference.

Meanwhile, for the California Condors' uniform design, go to "Magenta in Action" elsewhere here:

[neo_prankster]

After further review of this whole LA situation the NFL is faced with, I think the NFL is going to have to either move the Saints or the Chargers, or, the League can expand to 40 teams and still have a perfect alignment.

Add EIGHT teams? If that happens, we'll all be employed designing their logos and jerseys. Also, you'd have to add four games to the schedule: (1+2) two games within your division, (3) another game in the other division in your conference, and (4) another game in the division in the other conference.

Meanwhile, for the California Condors' uniform design, go to "Magenta in Action" elsewhere here:

What about adding more playoff spots?

[Puck]

Agreed.

The Rams leaving LA is in no way the public relations nightmare that the Saints leaving New Orleans at this particular time would be. Not even close.

I'd maybe agree if Benson had tried to move the Saints immediately after Katrina, but in another year or two, if he's not happy financially, he can say "Hey, I gave N.O. a few years to recover and it just didn't work". By the way, do you all remember what Roger Godell said about the Saints when he took office. He said something to the effect of "let's celebrate now, and we'll see about tomorrow". That is less than a ringing, rock solid endorsement in my book.

No, it would STILL be a nightmare because it's not as if the city is back to full operational status. So even if the NFL made the "business" decision to move on dollars and dollars only and harped on every news outlet about it being just a move about dollars, they would STILL shoot themselves in the foot. Why? Because you pretty much have the NFL committed to the city and its rebuilding. The best thing to do is put the shoulder down, swallow some losses and stay atop of it for as long as possible. Granted, not the best dollars decision, but in a situation like New Orleans I'd gladly lose a few dollars long before I ever lose face.

What about adding more playoff spots?

Can we just define the playoffs as a month of sunday games that the Arizona Cardinals are not allowed to play in?

[Gothamite]

Eight new teams? We don't even have thirty-two solid markets now. No way we could find seven new expansion sites.

[whitedawg22]

Thoughts:

1. That bird on the first page of this thread is a scary-ass, intimidating creature. I'd use Condors as the name for any new LA team, and stick to as accurate a replica as possible for the logo.

2. The NFL won't expand for a while. In addition to the concerns about messing up the balanced 32-team schedule and divisions, the owners are worried about dilution of their product.

3. An existing team will move to LA within the next 10 years. Having that spot vacant was a useful bargaining chip over the last 10, as most NFL teams got new stadia with the threat of moving to LA present. However, now that most NFL teams are playing in fairly new venues, not having a team in LA is no longer as valuable.

4. The existing team that moves to LA will be either the Saints or Jaguars. The Vikings and Bills are the only other remote possibilities, but they both have strong regional ties and large fan bases, and will most likely get new stadia eventually. Jacksonville doesn't have the infrastructure, population, interest, or tradition to support an NFL team, particularily one that looks like it's going to be rebuilding due to all the QB uncertainty. And while the Saints are a great feel-good story this year, once the goodwill and local enthusiasm wears off, the area will have a hard time supporting a NFL team due to its decreased population.

5. Both the Saints and Jaguars names would work in LA - Saints because of the City of Angels and Spanish missionary connections, Jaguars because of the Mexican warrior connotations. So, as sad as it might seem, the scary-ass condor probably won't be relevant to any team move. Additionally, the NFL would probably want to avoid changing a relocating team's name if at all possible, to capitalize on existing brand strength.

[Gothamite]

4. The existing team that moves to LA will be either the Saints or Jaguars. The Vikings and Bills are the only other remote possibilities, but they both have strong regional ties and large fan bases, and will most likely get new stadia eventually.

Why not the Chargers? Seems a much more natural fit, given the stadium situation in San Diego and the fact that the LA Chargers could keep broadcast rights to their former home.

5. Both the Saints and Jaguars names would work in LA - Saints because of the City of Angels and Spanish missionary connections, Jaguars because of the Mexican warrior connotations. So, as sad as it might seem, the scary-ass condor probably won't be relevant to any team move. Additionally, the NFL would probably want to avoid changing a relocating team's name if at all possible, to capitalize on existing brand strength.

You're presuming that the team that moves will have existing brand strength. If it's the Jags, I don't see any great financial benefit in keeping the name.

[whitedawg22]

4. The existing team that moves to LA will be either the Saints or Jaguars. The Vikings and Bills are the only other remote possibilities, but they both have strong regional ties and large fan bases, and will most likely get new stadia eventually.

Why not the Chargers? Seems a much more natural fit, given the stadium situation in San Diego and the fact that the LA Chargers could keep broadcast rights to their former home.

5. Both the Saints and Jaguars names would work in LA - Saints because of the City of Angels and Spanish missionary connections, Jaguars because of the Mexican warrior connotations. So, as sad as it might seem, the scary-ass condor probably won't be relevant to any team move. Additionally, the NFL would probably want to avoid changing a relocating team's name if at all possible, to capitalize on existing brand strength.

You're presuming that the team that moves will have existing brand strength. If it's the Jags, I don't see any great financial benefit in keeping the name.

I don't think the Chargers will be the one to move, because they're experiencing an upswing in success right now, and with LT and Rivers entering their primes, they will probably stay a good enough team for a while to maintain sufficient fan interest. If people are interested in the team in San Diego ("the whale's vagina"), even temporarily, they will figure out a way to stay put.

Although the Jags are as bereft of tradition as any NFL team, they still have brand strength. They've made the AFC Championship game twice in the last 10 years, they went 15-1 in 1999, and lots of people own their merchandise. While they're not the Cowboys or Raiders, the Jaguars brand still holds some value.