[Brian Rector]

Sounds like Jim Irsay has been listening to Randy Newman too much. (Newman wrote the song 'I Love LA')

Here Indianapolis is pondering whether to lay off 200 policemen and now Irsay is pressuring the city to come up with more money or else he will move the team elsewheres. IMHO, the Colts can move elsewheres and I really wont care much at all.

http://www.indystar.com/article.php?irsay25.html

 

[blingbling]

The traveling Colts and the ...back up the moving van in the middle of the night... wonderful Irsay family. Spreading the joy in Baltimore and now Indianapolis.

It is amazing that the second largest TV market in the U.S. has no NFL franchise.

 

[Mike]

Let's keep it, so the 2nd biggest market doesn't have a NFL franchise.

Blackouts, we don't want any blackouts on Sunday Ticket. Cardinals moved to Phoenix when I was there the 1st time in college. Cardinals were promised this and promised that. KTVK had to buy the remaining tickets to show the home opener against Dallas on local TV on MNF in '88. Here we are 14 years later. Where are we? Cardinals still don't play in a dome. It's 100 million degrees on the field last Sunday as Don Criqui told me. No one and I mean no one was sitting in the west looking stands up in the high seats at a "college" stadium. Game was not sold out and the Cardinals had a 1-1 record going into the game.

Same thing will happen here in LA. Promises and no one attending. Blackouts on the local CBS and FOX channels. Why have that? I like it just the way it is now. NFL wants a team here for ratings and revenue. Fans I know that like football do not want a team here. Prices will be too high and stuff like that forcing blackouts.

 

[blingbling]

You'd think something would have been worked out by now. What's the solution? A smaller stadium?!? Where did the Raiders play..the Coliseum? Its huge!

These blackouts are crazy. There was a possibility that Bears games (playing home games in Champaign this year) were going to be blacked out in Chicago due to the blackout rules! Lets see, your home team is playing 16 games on the road this year (essentially) and some of them may be blacked out. Crazy.

 

[James_F]

I agree Mike. Its tough to live in a market with a bad football team. I liked living in SoCal with so many games (before NFLST).

 

[Charles Oliva]

Well somebody is moving to LA, in this economy the NFL can't continue to have no team in this market. What needs to be factored in is that if a team moves to LA a new stadium is likely to be built for them and that means the Super Bowl returns to LA, and that's were the big money for the NFL is. So here's the choices LA, which one you want:

Cardinals- Stadium situation in AZ is so screwed up the Bidwell's will get sympathy from the other owners

Colts- It's not as though the Colts have always sucked, see above, yet they only have 32,000 season tickets holders. That keeps tickets prices low which means no added profit revenue for Irsay.

Chargers- DeFacto SoCal team already. What's interesting here is that the Chargers could move to Orange County and try to market to both LA and San Diego(blackouts would apply in both markets), If a team isn't in or moving to LA by 2004, watch for the Chargers to explore this.

Vikings- More likely headed to San Antonio if they move, but the NFL may put a roadblock on that if they feel LA offers more opportunities.


Remember LA, you could have had a brand spanking new team and stadium already if you didn't look indifferent when the NFL tried to hand you an expansion team. Now your going to get someone elses scraps.

 

[Mike]

Well, out of those choices, I'd take the Chargers. They are moving their training camp to Carson next year. I think they are the team coming into the market soon. I'd rather if I had a choice, take an expansion team, but with 32 now, there will have to be 1 more added somewhere besides LA/Orange County. Does that mean realignment again?

If Orange County got a team then I would probably attend some of those games. Plenty of room still in Irvine by the 5 freeway where the Orange groves used to be when I was a kid if the Irvine company donates the land.

Please, not the Cardinals! The Bidwell's have no clue how to run the team. Dave the coach has to be in the top 5 to get fired. How many 4th quarter failed/successful comebacks do you want to try this year? So far, 0-1 with the Snake? Is the Snake the answer at QB? Lots of questions with the Cardinals! If the Valley leaders supported the Cardinals fron day one, there would of been a dome stadium in the east valley years ago before the D'backs started.

 

[Brian Rector]

WTHR-13 reported that there is a area in the contract that the Colts signed with the city of Indy that is an escape clause. It states that if the RCA Dome is not a first class facility, then the Colts could leave the city without penalty. This could come as early as the 2004 season.

 

[John Corn]

That is what the lease stipulates. If the city doesn't boost revenues it breaks the lease. If the city breaks the lease, I wouldn't blame Irsay at all for moving.

The city must make payments until a new stadium can be built. That is just the price of doing business in the NFL. It's the same in every city with a team. Either you pay the extra half cent sales tax or lose the team - it's the cost of having an NFL team and if you don't want the team, go ahead and oppose it. It's that simple.

The city is also making payments on Conseco Fieldhouse, the Speedway refurbishment, the Art Museum expansion and a million other things instead of the Police force.

There is nothing complicated here. If the city fulfills the lease, which it is so doing, Irsay has no reason to go.

 

[Brian Rector]

http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=949364

 

[Timco]

LA dosen't need a football team. If the NFL wants the market so bad, then let THEM build a new stadium. LA has done just fine without a football team. Don't send a crap team to LA, they won't support it.

 

[Martyva]

Might invest in United Van Lines. I think they charge more for dead-o-night moves.