January 12th, 2016, was the day the NFL died in St. Louis for the second time. At the annual NFL owners’ meetings held in Houston, Texas, the NFL owners held a closed-door meeting where the collective owners voted to strip St. Louis of their second NFL team in less than 30 years.
At this point, we all know the facts.
Enos Stanley Kroenke had planned to move the team back to L. A. as early as 2010 (possibly sooner).
The NFL was knowledgeable of this fact as early as the spring of 2013 when Kroenke purchased the former horse race track at Hollywood Park in Inglewood.
Kevin Demoff Expects the Rams to Stay “Right here in St. Louis.”
After the land purchase was made, Kevin Demoff, Rams President, went on a whirlwind tour of St. Louis media outlets, reassuring fans that the team had no plans on leaving St. Louis, stating that the Hollywood Park land acquisition had nothing to do with moving the team and that “The land is not properly suited for a stadium.”
Demoff on Kroenke Land Purchase: “There’s nothing to hide.”
The NFL has been knowledgeable of this fact since the spring of 2013 when Kroenke purchased L.A. land.
The NFL told STL to continue stadium planning, knowing the outcome cost to STL would total into the millions. Every step of the way, the city was coached by several relocation committee members to “Keep going.”
We all know it’s true, Kevin!
Dave Peacock and Bob Blitz were smart enough to see the ruse on the horizon. The Rams wanted to keep the sweetheart lease they currently held so they could leave anytime they wanted, even if the city had ponied up for the over $750 million in renovations to the old EJD that was ruled in the Rams' favor per the arbitration ruling.
The Task Force worked their new stadium deal with a new lease, which sent the Rams and the NFL into a tizzy.
Let’s look into the timeline again, shall we?
.
The NFL then took their bunk joke of a clown show on the road to the three cities to meet the absolute bare minimum requirements for their “Relocation Guidelines.”
The NFL had capped attendance at all three hearings to 1,500 because, in their words, “San Diego and Oakland did not have enough seating capacity to match St. Louis’ capacity,” Which is B.S.
Before the town hall in St. Louis, the Stadium Task Force’s mantra retained the Rams. By this point in the timeline, the language had changed from the Task Force for “St. Louis to remain an NFL city.” It was apparent to those close to the situation that the Rams were already lost.
On October 27th, 2015, the St. Louis relocation town hall was held at Peabody Theatre in St. Louis. Many St. Louis NFL fans voiced their displeasure with the league over the possibility of the team relocating to Los Angeles.
During negotiations with the NFL’s Committee on Los Angeles Opportunities, former Panthers owner Jerry Richardson told the Stadium Task Force that the NFL would add $100 million to the G4 loan, which is usually $200 million. (After the relocation vote, San Diego and Oakland were offered $300 million in G4 loan subsidies that were denied to St. Louis) Look Below for the NFL memo to St. Louis.
The day before the vote of the St. Louis board of alderman on the potential riverfront stadium plan, Roger Goodell sent a scathing “private” memo that was leaked by Rams president Kevin Demoff, to the St. Louis Post Dispatch, chastising Dave Peacock, head of the stadium task force detailing NFL front offices disgust over terms of the new stadium even though it was the term given to the team from the league. This was purely done to disenfranchise the board into voting the referendum for stadium funding down, but unknowingly to Rams officials and the NFL. The referendum was passed the next day, putting the Rams and the NFL into a precarious position.
The Rams organization released a memo during the relocation hearings stating that if any NFL organization were to accept the St. Louis riverfront proposal would be “well on the road to financial ruin.”
Okay, here is where some explaining needs to be done.
The Stadium Task Force in St. Louis created the new stadium and lease agreement terms as a template of new stadiums built with their attached leases as a guidepost to direct them reasonably and justifiably. The stadiums and leases that were used included but, not limited to
Minnesota
Atlanta
Arizona
New York
If the St. Louis proposal wasn’t good enough or would lead a team to financial ruin, as the great Enos would say, why would any of these other proposals ever be accepted?
The St. Louis proposal was nearly identical in every way to the last 4-5 stadiums and lease agreements that were agreed upon by NFL owners.
The reason was that the NFL wanted to be in L.A. for the T.V./streaming revenue alone. They needed an owner with deep pockets, and they had been grooming Kroenke since bringing him into the league in 1995. He was a part of the St. Louis expansion attempt, which failed due to infighting and political involvement. He then purchased 30% of the Rams in their move to the Gateway City in 1995.
He sat on the expansion committee in L.A., which failed by, so in 1999 the expansion team was awarded to Houston. He then purchased an additional 10% stake in the Rams in the early 2000s. He was deep into the L.A. mess from the beginning.
Everything we were told in St. Louis was a lie to justify a means to an end.
It was L.A. or BUST!
Now, we’ll be seeing them in courts for their misdeeds unless there is a settlement, and let me tell you, the NFL wants nothing to do with their dirty laundry being aired on this matter because it WILL set a precedent.
Now, that brings me to the situation with the Jacksonville Jaguars........