NFL sends memo to all 32 teams about possible Raiders move to Las Vegas

The National Football League on Friday sent a memo to all 32 teams outlining a possible Raiders move to Las Vegas and instructions on how to handle any questions about it.

Most importantly, it discourages teams from assuming a Raiders move to Las Vegas would not be supported by the league and that there are no prohibitions under league rules on a team moving to any particular city.

That doesn’t mean the Raiders would get the necessary 24 votes to move to Las Vegas if they apply for relocation there. But it’s obvious the league will take a look at relocation to Las Vegas as seriously and diligently as they would a move to any city.

Incidentally, Raiders owners Mark Davis and team staff met Friday with Las Vegas Sands chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson about Adelson’s plans to build $1 billion domed stadium on the UNLV campus. The stadium could be a potential landing spot for the Raiders, who are waiting out the San Diego Chargers decision on whether to join the Rams in Los Angeles or remain long term in San Diego.

If the Chargers stay in San Diego, the Raiders would strongly consider joining the Rams in L.A. But if the Chargers move to Los Angeles, the Raiders would absolutely turn to San Diego as a potential new home.

And perhaps even Las Vegas.

Here are the contents of the emailed memo NFL teams received Friday:

There have been reports over the last day about a proposal to construct a new stadium in Las Vegas in connection with a possible move of the Raiders to Las Vegas. If your club owner or executives are asked about this, there is no need to comment. If any comment is offered, please keep the following points in mind:

1. All decisions regarding the location of teams are made by the full membership. Three-fourths of the member clubs must approve any team move.

2. No proposal made to the league. It would be speculative to suggest that your club would or would not support such a proposal. If such a proposal is made, it would be considered under the league’s relocation policies.

3. There is no prohibition under league rules on a team moving to any particular city. Any proposal for relocation would be evaluated based on the same standards as apply to any proposed move. Those standards are well-known, having just been applied in connection with relocation proposals to Los Angeles.

Let us know if you have any questions.

Chargers and Rams reach an agreement in principal

The San Diego Chargers and Los Angeles Rams have agreed in principle to a deal that will make them stadium partners in Los Angeles.

The question now is, will the Chargers ever call Los Angeles home?

We know for sure it won’t be in 2016. Chargers owner Dean Spanos announced Friday afternoon will now turn their attention on working out a long-term stadium deal in San Diego.

In essence, the Chargers will use their guaranteed spot in Los Angeles to leverage a stadium deal in San Diego, where they have spent the last 14 years unsuccessfully trying to secure a long-range home.

“Today I decided our team will stay in San Diego for the 2016 season and I hope for the long term in a new stadium,” Spanos said in a statement.”I have met with Mayor Faulconer and Supervisor Roberts and I look forward to working closely with them and the business community to resolve our stadium dilemma. We have an option and an agreement with the Los Angeles Rams to go to Inglewood in the next year, but my focus is on San Diego.

“This has been our home for 55 years, and I want to keep the team here and provide the world-class stadium experience you deserve.

“Everyone on both sides of the table in San Diego must now determine the best next steps and how to deploy the additional resources provided by the NFL.

“I am committed to looking at this with a fresh perspective and new sense of possibility.”

Rams owner Stan Kroenke issued a statement late Friday:

“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.”

In essence, the ball is in San Diego’s court.

The Chargers spot in Los Angeles was guaranteed two weeks ago in Houston when National Football League owners approved the Rams relocation to L.A. with the option of the Chargers or Raiders joining them at some point over the next three years.

It was a blow to Spanos and the Chargers, who had spent the previous 12 months building a case for their joint Carson stadium project with the Raiders. But at the very least, it created a certain L.A. landing spot for them.

Leaving Houston, their options were clear: Take the offer to join the Rams in Los Angeles in time for 2016 or use a deal as an incentive to spur San Diego leaders into real action on a new stadium.

There were risks in either option.

By going to L.A. immediately, they’d open San Diego as a potential landing spot for the Raiders while also being the decided second team in L.A. to the Rams, who played in L.A. from 1946 to 1994.

On the other hand, by spending the next 12 months working with San Diego on a new stadium – only to come up empty handed – they would have lost considerable marketing ground to the Rams in Los Angeles.

Obviously Spanos spent the two weeks since Houston weighing those options and risks.

On Friday, he played his hand by giving San Diego one more chance to work with him on a new home.

That means the Raiders will wait to find out there long-range future.

And it means the NFL watching closely

“We are very supportive of the decision by Dean Spanos to continue his efforts in San Diego and work with local leaders to develop a permanent stadium solution,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. NFL ownership has committed $300 million to assist in the cost of building a new stadium in San Diego. I have pledged the league’s full support in helping Dean to fulfill his goal.”

Report: Raiders to meet with officials in Las Vegas about stadium site

As predicted by NFL sources for months now, once all the dust settles from the Chargers joining the Rams in Los Angeles, the Oakland Raiders will emerge as the lone coveted free agent on the market able to field potential stadium plan offers from various cities.

At the top of that list stands Oakland, their current home, and San Diego once the Chargers clear out.

Looks like another option is emerging from an unlikely but intriguing location.

According to a report in the Las Vegas Review Journal, Raiders Mark Davis, owner of the Oakland Raiders, is scheduled to meet with Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson on Friday, possibly to discuss the Sands Corp proposal to build a $1 billion domed stadium on 42 acres near the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

The stadium would be home to school’s football team. And now, potentially, a possible National Football League franchise.

A high-ranking Raiders official wouldn’t confirm or deny the report. Read what you will into that, but it sure seems like the Raiders are at least interested in meeting with a Las Vegas high-roller.

You can read the entire Review-Journal story here.

Needless to say, depending on what happens with the Chargers, the next 12 months could end up being pretty busy for the Raiders as they look to secure a long-range home.

Somewhere.

As for the 2016 season, the most likely bet is that the Raiders sign a short-term lease at their current home and spend the year fielding offers from Oakland, San Diego and maybe San Antonio and Las Vegas

World Renowned Architect: Qualcomm Stadium can be renovated

Should the San Diego Chargers relocate to Los Angeles, the Oakland Raiders would be interested in looking south to San Diego as a potential new home.

And sources have indicated they would be interested in renovating Qualcomm Stadium, where the Chargers played for more than 50 years.

If so, it would be a much cheaper option for the Raiders and that means a more palatable plan for San Diego leaders to potentially take to local residents.

The problem is, for years the idea of renovating Qualcomm Stadium has been rejected as a non-starter. Especially if the ultimate goal is to host Super Bowls.

Not so fast, says Dan Meis, a world-renowned architect who has designed sports facilities such as The Staples Center, Safeco Field, Paul Brown Stadium and many others.

Meis insists Qualcomm isn’t just a candidate to be redone, but also lifted to a suitable Super Bowl venue.

Meis joined Judson Richards today on XTRA 1360 FOX Sports San Diego. In the interview, Meis discusses how renovating Qualcomm Stadium is a viable option.

Here is a short transcript of the interview:

Judson: Dan, hypothetically speaking, if I cut you a check for $500 million…could you make the Q something the NFL would say ‘okay, we would host a Super Bowl here?’

Meis: “No doubt, no doubt. It could definitely be done.”

If so, that would be a game changer.

Here is a link to the full interview.

Chargers submit papers on OC land for potential team headquarters

As the San Diego Chargers work through negotiations on a partnership with the Los Angeles Rams on the Rams’ Inglewood stadium project, some other elements of the Chargers potential move to L.A. are coming into place.

First came word that the Los Angeles Coliseum Commission would request from USC use of the Coliseum for two NFL teams next season. And now comes news that the Chargers are looking at a parcel of land in Santa Ana to serve as their interim headquarters and training facility should they relocate to Los Angeles for the 2016 season.

The Chargers have up to a year to decide if they want to join the Rams in Los Angeles, and a decision could be announced by the end of the week. Obviously lining up a training facility is an important piece of that puzzle.

Here is the Chargers statement about the Santa Ana land”

This week the Chargers submitted grading and landscape plans for approval by the City of Santa Ana. The plans are for a five-acre parcel in Santa Ana that would be the location of the team’s interim headquarters and training facilities in the event the team exercises its option to relocate to the Los Angeles area. The Chargers were granted the right to relocate to Los Angeles by vote of the NFL’s ownership on January 12, 2016. The franchise is continuing to review all of its options, and no final decision on relocation has been made. It was necessary for the team to submit the grading and landscape plans now because of the long lead time necessary to secure land use approvals and to prepare the natural grass practice fields in time for the team’s offseason workout schedule.

It doesn’t mean the Chargers are coming to Los Angeles, obviously. But more and more, they are laying the ground work for a potential move.