So Kroenke done fucked up now

And it really pisses me off also.

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.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/390269-so-ann-walton-kroenke-is-the-next-owner-of-the-st-louis-rams

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:

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.

Khan vs. Kroenke! Fight!

So the other ownership shoe dropped last night. Adam Schefter announced on ESPN's NFL Live that Silent Stan Kroenke has decided to exercise his contractual right of first refusal to purchase the Rams. I wanted to wait for confirming details before blogging about it. The report is correct. Enos Stan Kroenke has decided to exercise his contractual right of first refusal to purchase the remaining 60% of Ram stock he does not already own. This puts him squarely at odds with league rules and with Shahid Khan.

First the league rules.

As you all know, the league has bylaws forbidding NFL majority owners from owning a majority share in any other sports franchise in an NFL city. The rule rule used to prohibit ownership of any other pro-franchise in any city. The rule was mildly re-interpreted to allow Paul Allen {owner of the Portland Trailblazers} to purchase the Seattle Seahawks. The league owners wanted Paul Allen in the clubhouse and on the golf course. The owners wanted a league connection to the new silicone economy, and to Microsoft.

League insiders have been divided on whether Kroenke might obtain a similar wavier, and/or whether the league might be prepared to do away with this archaic rule entirely. Many believe that this rule is an archaic relic of a bygone era. Many others believe the league will not change its policy for Kroenke's sake. We are about to find out, one way or the other.

Owning both an NBA and NHL franchise in Denver should automatically disqualify Kroenke, but it just so happens he is a buddy and business partner of Pat Bowlen. Bowlen is the owner of the Denver Broncos, and co-owner of the Colorado Crush of the Arena League... along with Stan Kroenke. Insiders expect Bowlen will plead his friend's case. Pat Bowlen is a powerful owner, and he is also the theoretical aggrieved party according to the strange philosophy behind the cross-ownership rule. Given Bowlen's blessing, the deal might roll.

Several factors militate in Kroenke's favor:

1. The NFL Finance committee already announced that it doesn't like one of the several financial devices Khan intends to use to purchase the Rams.
2. Kroenke is already an insider. He has been partial owner of the Rams since the early 1990s. He has been vice chairman of the Rams' board for some time, and served on several NFL committees.
3. Kroenke has more money than Khan. Kroenke is worth an estimated $3 billion. His wife--Anne Walton, a Walmart heir--is worth $3.5 billion. Together they are worth approximately 3 times as much as Shahid Khan ($2.14 billion).
4. The NFL ownership booth is one of the most exclusive clubs around. It is a consummate old-boys' network. Kroenke is much more their type of guy than Khan.

What is my take on the situation?

On the one hand, I would have been shocked if Kroenke hadn't exercised his right to purchase the rest of the Rams. My memory fails, but I remember Kroenke buying into the Rams back in 1993 or 1994, when the Rams were having serious financial trouble keeping up with the Joneses {Jerry Jones and Eddie DeBartolo}. It was understood at the time that he wanted to buy the whole enchilada. This was the reason for the contractual right of first refusal he has chosen to exercise now. Ever since then, Kroenke has been waiting on line to buy the Rams.

Why didn't he just attempt to buy outright? One word: Strategy. He wanted the market to set a low price in accordance with the financial distress our nation is going through at the moment. There is also the cross-ownership rule which needs to be gotten around. Kroenke wanted to see what sort of ownership interest the Rams might scratch up, and see whether the owner's club might prefer Kroenke to own the Rams.

Will this blow up in his face? I seriously doubt a man of Kroenke's sense would have exercised his right of first refusal if he had not been given some indications, if not outright assurances, that the NFL would hear his case with favor. I think he is confident that he will be approved, or he would not have made this move.

Now the fight with Khan.

If the league rejects Khan and elects Kroenke, the move could be interpreted in racial terms. Would this be a case where collection of white Europeans just didn't want a Pakistani fellow in the clubhouse? This could make for some very interesting league wrangling inside league circles. Pray for the good of the Rams that this doesn't happen. This could hold the Rams' ownership status in limbo for several years. This could make for several years of lost franchise history.

Hold on to your arse Ram fans... it looks like we have an unexpected buyer

The Rams have been for sale for the better part of a year now... either officially or unofficially depending on whom you listen too. This sale has been greatly protracted by the Great Recession. Now we may have reached the end of the deal.

According to the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, the Rams have been sold to Shahid Khan. You may want to have a look at Bernie Miklasz's fine piece here for some solid details.

What we do know:

1. Khan is a 55 year old 1st generation immanent to the United States. His family immigrated to the St. Louis from Pakistan when he was a child. He attended the University of Illinois, Champagne/Urbana where he earned an engineering degree.
2. He is said to regard St. Louis as his hometown, and is purportedly an enthusiastic Ram fan who has attended games in the Edward Jones dome.
   
3. Khan is expected to purchase the 60% owned by Chip Rosenbloom and Lucia Rodriguez.
4. Khan is purportedly prepared to purchase Kroenke's 40% should he activate the poison pill clause in his ownership agreement.
   
5. Khan is the only buyer. He has no partners. He will be the sole owner at the end of the day, if he is approved.
   
6. The total value of the team has been placed between $725 and $750 million
7. Khan is the president and owner Urbana Illinois based Flex-N-Gate Corporation (FNG).
8. Flex-N-Gate is in the auto parts business, with an emphasis on heavy work truck parts and components.
9. According to Forbes, FNG is the 229th largest company in the United states with an estimated global revenue stream of approximately $2.14B.
   
10. Flex-N-Gate has approximately 10k employees at 57 facilities in 5 countries.
    
11. Khan has apparently had some tax issues. Between 1999-2003, Khan and his wife Ann were investigated for allegedly sheltering $250M from the IRS. This was allegedly settled when his wife Ann paid $68m in back-taxes to the IRS. Khan stated that he would pursue litigation to obtain a refund of this cash.
12. According to the associated press, Khan is committed to keeping the team in St. Louis. He has allegedly stated that he entered his bid to own a team in his hometown and his hometown only.
    

What we do not know:

1. Has Khan purchased the 40% share owned by Enos Stanley Kroenke?
2. Has he reached an accommodation with Silent Stan?
3. Is Stan planning to use his right of first refusal?
4. Will the owners waive the cross-ownership clause for Silent Stan?
   
5. Will 75% of the NFL owners vote him into the club?

This is going to be very interesting to watch. To the best of my knowledge, Mr. Khan is of East Indian extraction. To the best of my knowledge, there has never been a non-white owner of non-European extraction. The NFL Owners' club is a very elitist and clickish group. However, they have not blocked the acquisition of a team often. I will have to look for the last precedent.

For a 30 year Ram fan who has been following this process every day, closely, this outcome is nothing short of a shocker. Never once in all the pieces I read was the name Shahid Khan ever mentioned. He completely evaded our Radar net. He was nowhere on the scope. If these reports are accurate, Khan abruptly materialized out of thin air to snatch the team when nobody expected it.

Perhaps I speak out of turn, and out of school, but I suspect Mr. Khan may have some difficulties with the owners, whether real or contrived. I suspect he may have to negotiate a deal to get into this exclusive club. Methinks we will find out exactly what the NFL wants more: A team in St. Louis or a team in Los Angeles?