Personally, I think it's nothing but a bluff, that if the Raiders were to move, it would be to LA. But who knows.
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-foo ... -officials
FolkCrusader wrote:I agree with the comments in the thread for the most part. I think the Raiders are desperate for some sort of leverage in negotiations regarding the Coliseum. It's really a rather poor venue for professional football but the Davis family is football rich and cash poor. Ideally they need the city of Oakland to step up and build a new stadium and in the short term make improvements to both the surface and the existing stadium. Of course at the same time the city needs to deal with the A's and their needs. The politicos in Oakland say no way no how are they issuing bonds for a new stadium, the Davis' do not have the kind of cash it would take to build.
The NFL threw out the possibility of playing in the new 49er's stadium in Santa Clara which should have given them some leverage, but rather stupidly Mark Davis stepped all over the idea. I suppose because he was working on the San Antonio idea. Although for now I do think it is about leverage, I also think it is a viable option. They have a current facility that is NFL capable but not NFL ideal. There seems to be a willingness in San Antonio to build a new stadium as required. Keep in mind Jerruh steals money from the cities in North Texas right and left. If the San Antonio tax payers are similarly inclined it could be a sweet deal for the Raiders.
As far as LA, I think Goodell has made it pretty clear that no one is just moving in to the LA market for free. It would be a sweet deal for any team because their $1 billion team would instantly become a $2 billion team. The NFL wants that value paid back to it's other teams. Frankly, I think they would rather grant two new franchises there at $2 billion apiece and divvy up the money. If Davis or any other owner wants to go to LA they are going to be paying to do so. Add on to that the fact that out of all the really smart people trying to get a stadium deal done in LA no one can seem to do it. It's a greed fest in LA, everyone knows the franchise will instantly become one of the most valuable in the world and everyone wants a slice.
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