Courtesy: ESPN.com
Will it be the San Diego Chargers? Will it be the Oakland Raiders? Will both go? Or… is it the St. Louis Rams’ territory?
Early Wednesday morning — late Tuesday night out west — the Associated Press reported the Inglewood City Council approved plans for the construction of a proposed Los Angeles-area stadium backed by the owner of the St. Louis Rams Stan Kroenke.
The council approved a $2 billion plan that was passed with a unanimous 5-0 vote.
A public vote and lengthy environmental review can now be avoided and Los Angeles may house a football team for the first time in over two decades.
One of the biggest supporters of the move is 54-year-old Henry Yet. He is a board member of the Southern California Ram boosters.
“I’m not going to sleep, I’ll probably stay up all night just thinking about it,” Yet said. “This is a monumental step.”
But there’s still a catch. A planned 80,000 seat, 60-acre stadium initially created back in 2009 can only come to fruition if the partnership between the former Hollywood Park horse track and the NFL works out. The decision is on the league’s plate for a stadium that could create over 10,000 jobs and bring in millions of dollars to the already affluent area in tax revenue.
So, are the Rams the right choice in a football sense?
The Rams went 6-10 last season. They faced two other teams vying for a chance to place in Los Angeles — they fell to the Chargers (9-7, missed playoffs) 27-24 and blew out the Raiders (3-13, missed playoffs) 52-0. St. Louis will not face these teams again in the regular season until the 2018 season where Oakland will play host and San Diego will travel to wherever the Rams are playing at that time.
All three franchises are at interesting spots. The Chargers are a team that is always on the borderline of being good and average and looks like they will be walking on that rope for awhile. The Raiders are continuing to struggle to build a winner, but they have new hope with Jack Del Rio as the new general. Both of these teams have stadiums that need more than a makeover and why a move to a new location has been pondered.
The Rams make the most sense for the future though. They are already in the NFC West, so Los Angeles works out in regards to division alignment… as it would for the other two franchises. They are young at key skill positions, have lots of team speed and are somewhat built like the Seattle Seahawks in 2011 before they reached the level they are at in 2015. They play good defense, have a solid front seven including Defensive Rookie of the Year defensive lineman Aaron Donald, have the ability to run the football, but their only major flaw is the uncertainty at the quarterback position.
How much longer can the Rams hold on to Sam Bradford given the significant injuries that continue to haunt his career? With the NFL Draft not being too stacked with quarterback talent, the Rams may have to sit on their hands and roll with the punches as they continue to build the pieces on the rest of the roster.
6-10 was not an accurate indicator of the talent on this team as five of their losses were decided by 10 points or less. They also play in one of the strongest divisions in football despite a down year from the San Francisco 49ers.
Sure, the quarterback situation is far more favorable for the Chargers than the Rams and the Raiders, but in looking at the rosters going forward, St. Louis has the most potential for growth. Jeff Fisher is also a born winner and a change of scenery can be a spur the team needs in order to build some morale they’re starting to construct with their youthful weapons.
The only issue? The fans in St. Louis go to the games no matter what their team’s record is.
How can the NFL rip a good sports town’s team from their hands?
Simple. The NFL is a business. And Los Angeles provides more revenue opportunities than St. Louis.
