I wrote a piece for the Bleacher Report earlier today summarizing Stan Kroenke's latest moves in front of the NFL Finance Committee. No need to re-write the whole piece here, I'll just give you the link.
You have to be amazed by the gall of billionaires. I suppose they never would have become billionaires if they didn't have a ton of gall, though.
Basically, Stan is throwing out one of the most brazen attempts to flaunt the cross-ownership rules we've ever seen, and he might even expect the NFL to go for it. This is enough to make the common man shake his head in amazement.
Stranger thing still: I pick up a commenter on the site, who I have seen before, who appears to have some legal background. He argues like a counselor retained by Kroenke. Of course, liars for hire never see anything wrong with their client's proposals... publicly, that is.
The crying shame of it is as follows: I am being forced to publicly make the case for Khan, when I actually favor Kroenke as owner of the team. Bouy... if this cat Armen is actually a lawyer for Kroenke he aught to be fired quick. He's a backfire bomber.
Personally, I think the Cross-Ownership rules are a crock of shit which belong to a bygone era. I have no idea what validity they may have had either in the past or the present. I find it difficult to understand why the NFL would maintain these rules at all. Makes no sense to me.
Perhaps the NFL was once afraid of becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Major League Baseball or something. No need to worry about that now.
The worst part is that we can expect the Rams' ownership limbo to continue for something like another 12 months, I am sure. Kroenke's first proposal, which is preposterous, is described by sources inside his camp as "a first offer in a complicated negotiation".
That sounds like this negotiation is going to be quite time consuming. It looks like Ram-fan aren't going to get a speed resolution to our ownership muddle. Looks like we can't move forward aggressively in rebuilding the team.
Oh well, it's much the same. There is no guarantee either owner would have approved a front-loaded 44-47 million dollar contract for Brandon Marshall anyhow. Neither of these gents may have wanted to spend $7.25 claiming Alan Faneca on waivers. We probably would have missed out anyway. Life sucks if you're rebuilding the Rams right now.
And what about Khan?
Having created a very stupid set of bylaws, the NFL may well have a legal problem on its hands if they suddenly and magically wave the rule (one time only) for Enos Stanly Kroenke. Under the current set of bylaws, Khan can reasonably expect the NFL to reject Kroenke's proposal. Khan should also be able to petition for a speedy verdict on his own bid to buy the Rams, as he is the first guy waiting in line.
So, if I am the Commish, how would I unfuck the situation? Okay here's how it goes:
- Start by rejecting Khan's proposal for financial reasons. The Finance Committee already stated they didn't like a couple of leverage devices Khan is using in his bid. Do this first. Do this before anything else.
- Destroy the cross-ownership bylaw entirely. Talk the guys into it. I think it will be easy. Ask them to explain why this rule exists in the first place. Just do away with it.
- Let Kroenke buy the team outright. No fucking manipulations or disco dancing. Stan owns the Rams, the Avalanche and the Nuggets.
Anyhow... I'm pissed. My franchise is twisting in the wind. We've been left hanging during the uncapped year. Now is the time to sign those front-loaded contracts. We're fucked.
