Jaguars considering playing some games in Orlando

[Gothamite]

I don't see San Antonio as a viable option, either. For all the reasons listed.

And there won't be a second team in LA for a while after the first

Why not?

Provided that the two teams are from different conferences, and that stadium issues could be resolved, I don't see any real reason to believe that the NFL would prohibit a second team from moving in.

I've thought the NFL was fine without a team in LA, but the League obviously wants in in a big way. Trading a failing market for both conferences in LA for would seem to suit them just fine.

[The_Admiral]

To repeat myself, I can see Fox getting miffed if Los Angeles is AFC-exclusive. Fox is paying for the big-market package, CBS the small-market. CBS is paying less because they're saddled with the likes of Jacksonville and Buffalo, and now they're trading up to Los Angeles? Some bargain.

[Brian in Boston]

To repeat myself, I can see Fox getting miffed if Los Angeles is AFC-exclusive. Fox is paying for the big-market package, CBS the small-market. CBS is paying less because they're saddled with the likes of Jacksonville and Buffalo, and now they're trading up to Los Angeles? Some bargain.

Let's say that the San Diego Chargers were the only NFL franchise that relocated to Los Angeles. The fact that CBS would suddenly trade the #28 Nielsen television market for sole possession of the #2 market would hardly undermine FOX's claim on the "big-market" NFL broadcast package. The NFC - and, by extension FOX - would still be home to NFL franchises in 7 of the top 10 Nielsen markets, and 12 of the top 20.

#1 - New York (shared)

#3 - Chicago

#4 - Philadelphia

#5 - Dallas-Ft. Worth

#6 - San Francisco-San Jose-Oakland (shared)

#8 - Atlanta

#9 - Washington, DC

#11 - Detroit

#12 - Phoenix

#13 - Seattle

#14 - Tampa-St. Petersburg

#15 - Minneapolis-St. Paul

What's more, if two NFL franchises were to relocate to Los Angeles and both happened to be AFC franchises, there is every reason to believe that the league would arrange to have one of the relocated teams swap conferences with a current NFC franchise. In this way, they would set-up a two-conference dynamic in the Los Angeles market similar to that which exists in the New York and San Francisco Bay Area markets.

[STL FANATIC]

I'd be surprised if the NFL jumped right into 2-teams in LA, though. Not that they couldn't support, but I just don't think you do it within 3 years of each other.

Also, and this is just an interesting point in general, but what NFL markets are presently failing or struggling in some way?

Jacksonville is failing as far as fan support.

St. Louis isn't selling out every game with the worst team, but the fans are there. The stadium is the issue.

Buffalo seems to have maxed out, but their fanbase is strong.

San Diego... someone want to clarify to me what their situation is? Is it just the stadium and an inability to get a new one?

San Francisco is after a new stadium, but they're hardly struggling.

Anybody else?

I think if you interpret the term "failing" to mean a lack of fan support and profit, then Jacksonville may be the only one.

That's not to say that St. Louis or San Diego or the others wouldn't be MORE profitable in LA (or preferably for them, their own new stadium), though.

[Saintsfan]

To repeat myself, I can see Fox getting miffed if Los Angeles is AFC-exclusive. Fox is paying for the big-market package, CBS the small-market. CBS is paying less because they're saddled with the likes of Jacksonville and Buffalo, and now they're trading up to Los Angeles? Some bargain.

I am not sure that argument holds much water really. Moving 1 franchise is hardly going to be a huge deal as far as that is concerned. The AFC has Boston, which is a reaonably sized media market, Miami and a lock on Ohio. Its not like there aren't a few big markets already. And its not like moving an AFC team to LA weakens the NFC's media markets.

[Brave-Bird 08]

i dont want to see them moved to LA. if anyone needs to move to LA...its the Raiders. it makese sense. the market would work in their favor...considering how close the Oakland market is to the San Fran market.

Jags could move out of Florida. Florida has two teams already. I just cant think of an area in that region that could do better.

Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville, and New Orleans are the only strong markets in the south east.

if the Jags stay in fl, they could move to Orlando. But then again, Alltel Stadium would serve less of a purpose.

It would influence UGA and UF to move their annual game...b/c otherwise that stadium wouldnt be used for more than a few events a year.

make those damn Gators make a trip to the Georgia Dome for once

[The_Admiral]

i dont want to see them moved to LA. if anyone needs to move to LA...its the Raiders. it makese sense. the market would work in their favor...considering how close the Oakland market is to the San Fran market.

There's no such thing as an "Oakland market." San Francisco and Oakland are both in the same metropolitan area and media market.

I didn't say Fox would block a move or demand a realignment, by the way. I just think they'd be miffed.

[IceCap]

I'd be surprised if the NFL jumped right into 2-teams in LA, though. Not that they couldn't support, but I just don't think you do it within 3 years of each other.

This. The NFL may want a team in LA, and they may ideally want two teams there eventually, but they can't ignore the fact that this is still a market that lost two teams relatively recently. It seems the best approach is an evolutionary one. Set one team up there, wait for the support to build, then if there's a demand that the one team can't meet, see if there's another team looking to relocate. Ten years between franchises, I would think.

Given how much the NFL wants the LA market to work, they probably don't want to potentially cripple it with two teams right off the bat. If they take their time the potential payoff would be worth it.

San Diego... someone want to clarify to me what their situation is? Is it just the stadium and an inability to get a new one?

It's the stadium. Fan support is there, no question, but Qualcomm Stadium has been there since '67. They want an new stadium and the city's not budging on the issue, seeing as the Q's "statistically acceptable."

It was also around time that the city first put up roadblocks to a new stadium, IIRC, that the Chargers started to focus on LA as a "secondary market."

[Gothamite]

I'd be surprised if the NFL jumped right into 2-teams in LA, though. Not that they couldn't support, but I just don't think you do it within 3 years of each other.

The NFL may want a team in LA, and they may ideally want two teams there eventually, but they can't ignore the fact that this is still a market that lost two teams relatively recently.

Although the Rams struggled their last few years in LA, the market wasn't blamed for both clubs moving at the time and shouldn't be blamed in retrospect.

Al Davis left over stadium issues, plain and simple. The NFL thought highly enough of the LA market at the time that it not only tried to convince Davis to stay but was planning to put a second team in LA had the Hollywood Park stadium been built.

I don't think the NFL feels that, once a stadium is built, the market needs much time to develop before it can handle a second team. And make no mistake, that stadium issue is the only reason LaLaLand doesn't have a team right now - the NFL has certainly made its position clear.

[IceCap]

I'd be surprised if the NFL jumped right into 2-teams in LA, though. Not that they couldn't support, but I just don't think you do it within 3 years of each other.

The NFL may want a team in LA, and they may ideally want two teams there eventually, but they can't ignore the fact that this is still a market that lost two teams relatively recently.

Although the Rams struggled their last few years in LA, the market wasn't blamed for both clubs moving at the time and shouldn't be blamed in retrospect.

Al Davis left over stadium issues, plain and simple. The NFL thought highly enough of the LA market at the time that it not only tried to convince Davis to stay but was planning to put a second team in LA had the Hollywood Park stadium been built.

I don't think the NFL feels that, once a stadium is built, the market needs much time to develop before it can handle a second team. And make no mistake, that stadium issue is the only reason LaLaLand doesn't have a team right now - the NFL has certainly made its position clear.

I'm not sure who you're arguing with, I agree with all of that. I'm just saying that seeing as the NFL wants LA to work, they're going to want to ease into it rather then overload it right off that bat. LA will get one team within five years. A second, some time after that.

[Gothamite]

Our point of disagreement is this - I don't think the league thinks it has to ease back into the LA market.

Presuming for the moment that two teams are looking to relocate, I don't see any reason why the NFL wouldn't just go ahead and jump back into Los Angeles with both conferences. Er, feet.

If the stadium problem has finally been solved, and that certainly appears to be the case, I can see a scenario in which the league moves two franchises in. If not the same year, in successive seasons. I don't sense them feeling the need to wait very much if at all.

[IceCap]

Our point of disagreement is this - I don't think the league thinks it has to ease back into the LA market.

Agree to disagree then?

Presuming for the moment that two teams are looking to relocate, I don't see any reason why the NFL wouldn't just go ahead and jump back into Los Angeles with both conferences. Er, feet.

If the stadium problem has finally been solved, and that certainly appears to be the case, I can see a scenario in which the league moves two franchises in. If not the same year, in successive seasons. I don't sense them feeling the need to wait very much if at all.

It's definitely a possibility. And it works out rather well either way if we assume the NFL's ok with potentially letting one team switch conferences (I'm think the Jags, if it's them and the Chargers), which I think they will be.

[HedleyLamarr]

if the Jags stay in fl, they could move to Orlando. But then again, Alltel Stadium would serve less of a purpose.

It would influence UGA and UF to move their annual game...b/c otherwise that stadium wouldnt be used for more than a few events a year.

make those damn Gators make a trip to the Georgia Dome for once

I may be in the minority, but I'm one of the supporters for keeping the Georgia-Florida game in Jacksonville. Maybe play in the Georgia Dome once every 3-4 years, but other than that, I prefer they keep that game in Jacksonville. All you'd need to convince yourself of keeping the game there is spending a weekend in Jacksonville on UGA-UF weekend.

Jacksonville could probably benefit from hosting 2-3 neutral-site games a year, in addition to the Georgia-Florida game. Florida State played Alabama there a couple years ago, I'm sure FSU would be open to "hosting" a non-conference game in Jacksonville.

[Saintsfan]

i dont want to see them moved to LA. if anyone needs to move to LA...its the Raiders. it makese sense. the market would work in their favor...considering how close the Oakland market is to the San Fran market.

There's no such thing as an "Oakland market." San Francisco and Oakland are both in the same metropolitan area and media market.

I didn't say Fox would block a move or demand a realignment, by the way. I just think they'd be miffed.

Well you might be right, but I don't really think they will be all that bothered given that they have a lock on most of the big markets. (Though they might like an NFC team as well in LA, greedy organisation that they are!)

[DarkJourney]

-Chargers move to L.A.

-Jaguars move to L.A. a few years after

-Jaguars move to NFC West

-Panthers move to AFC South

-Rams move to NFC South

[IceCap]

Ooooo, I like that DJ. I'm up for anything that restarts the Bucs/Rams rivalry.

[rams80]

Ooooo, I like that DJ. I'm up for anything that restarts the Bucs/Rams rivalry.

It was a rivalry for what? Not even 5 years? And nobody is really left from those games anyway.

[IceCap]

Ooooo, I like that DJ. I'm up for anything that restarts the Bucs/Rams rivalry.

It was a rivalry for what? Not even 5 years? And nobody is really left from those games anyway.

Still, there's history there, and I do remember a few really good games coming out of it. Plus if you really want to make a case for it, you could stretch it back to the 1979 (IIRC) NFC title game.

[rams80]

Ooooo, I like that DJ. I'm up for anything that restarts the Bucs/Rams rivalry.

It was a rivalry for what? Not even 5 years? And nobody is really left from those games anyway.

Still, there's history there, and I do remember a few really good games coming out of it. Plus if you really want to make a case for it, you could stretch it back to the 1979 (IIRC) NFC title game.

In the same way, there is history between the Rams and the Patriots.

[IceCap]

Yeah, but the Bucs and Rams getting into the same division to restart that rivalry is much more likely then the Rams and Pats doing the same.