01-13-2016, 01:59 PM
The thing is, the most obvious thing would have been for the Raiders to move. The Raiders were the only team in a geographic area that already had an NFL team, and they were the ones for whom a new stadium would have been the biggest hurdle (both St. Louis and San Diego worked to get a new stadium, but the Rams and Chargers didn't like the plans and/or terms). I believe Levi's was originally built to house two teams, but the Raiders know they would be playing second fiddle to the Forty-niners. OTOH, the stadium in Oakland is among the worst in the NFL, much worse than the much maligned Jack Murphy (I refuse to call it Qualcomm) stadium.
The problem with either the Chargers or Raiders moving to LA is that clearly the Inglewood stadium is Stan Kroenke's baby, and whichever team winds up moving there will be the red-headed step-child. Kroenke is one of the more powerful owners in the league, and he is basically building the stadium (and developing the surrounding area) without public financing*. He has offered to either lease the stadium or joint ownership to the Chargers (or Raiders if the Chargers stay put), but it is clear that the Chargers/Raiders would be junior partners in the deal.
As others have noted, now that a team is moving into LA, San Diego's smallish fan base is eroded further, and the whole episode has soured many fans (including my brother, a former season ticket holder). My guess is that at the end of the day, the Chargers will move to LA rather than allow the Rams and Raiders to dominate the Southern California market, but maybe they will be able to extract a good deal from the city of San Diego, and the $100 million offered by the league, plus the relocation fee will soften the blow. I'd say it's about a 75/25 proposition.
BC
* It's never entirely without public financing, since Inglewood will have to build roads and infrastructure to accommodate it, and has probably offered some juicy tax breaks, but hasn't put up money for the stadium itself.
The problem with either the Chargers or Raiders moving to LA is that clearly the Inglewood stadium is Stan Kroenke's baby, and whichever team winds up moving there will be the red-headed step-child. Kroenke is one of the more powerful owners in the league, and he is basically building the stadium (and developing the surrounding area) without public financing*. He has offered to either lease the stadium or joint ownership to the Chargers (or Raiders if the Chargers stay put), but it is clear that the Chargers/Raiders would be junior partners in the deal.
As others have noted, now that a team is moving into LA, San Diego's smallish fan base is eroded further, and the whole episode has soured many fans (including my brother, a former season ticket holder). My guess is that at the end of the day, the Chargers will move to LA rather than allow the Rams and Raiders to dominate the Southern California market, but maybe they will be able to extract a good deal from the city of San Diego, and the $100 million offered by the league, plus the relocation fee will soften the blow. I'd say it's about a 75/25 proposition.
BC
* It's never entirely without public financing, since Inglewood will have to build roads and infrastructure to accommodate it, and has probably offered some juicy tax breaks, but hasn't put up money for the stadium itself.