Brian Damage
04-15-2010, 11:17 AM
* I refuse to assume anything about Stan Kroenke’s long-term intentions with the Rams in St. Louis should he gain control of the team. He’s a businessman first. He’s a player on the world stage of sports, which to me overrides his Missouri roots. Kroenke’s base is Denver. He has a place in Malibu. Go back and read Kroenke’s statement from Monday night; there is absolutely nothing in there — not even a throwaway line — about St. Louis. Understand that these statements are carefully worded and reviewed by attorneys and PR men. You can find a lot in them based on what you DON’T find in them. And to me Kroenke’s choice to immediately distance himself from anything concerning the team’s future in St. Louis was interesting, to say the least. And I wasn’t the only person who picked up on that. So until Stan expresses a desire to keep the team here beyond 2014, until he expresses a desire to work with local officials to find a long-term solution to the stadium issue, then I decline to assume anything about his intentions. All bets are off.
* At least Shahid Khan made it clear from the beginning that his goal was to keep the Rams in St. Louis.
* If Kroenke wants to revisit his statement and add something about the Rams’ future in St. Louis — if he wants to communicate a positive message — there’s no shortage of STL media folks who will be pleased to get the word out. But until he does — again — I decline to make assumptions about what he has planned.
* And then there’s this serving from Los Angeles Times columnist T.J. Simers: “The Rams may be returning to the Los Angeles area in 2015 under the ownership of Stan Kroenke. Kroenke … Kroenke has some work to do to satisfy NFL cross ownership rules, but he owns a home in the L.A. area, took an interest, along with business partner John Elway, in owning an expansion team in L.A. a few years back, and still counts John Shaw, who engineered the Rams’ move to St. Louis, as one of his good friends. And Shaw has it arranged so the Rams can move again in 2015 if St. Louis doesn’t provide the team with a new stadium.”
http://interact.stltoday.com/blogzone/bernies-extra-points/bernies-extra-points/bernies-5-minutes/2010/04/wednesday-bernie-bytes-rams-pain-blues-payne/
* At least Shahid Khan made it clear from the beginning that his goal was to keep the Rams in St. Louis.
* If Kroenke wants to revisit his statement and add something about the Rams’ future in St. Louis — if he wants to communicate a positive message — there’s no shortage of STL media folks who will be pleased to get the word out. But until he does — again — I decline to make assumptions about what he has planned.
* And then there’s this serving from Los Angeles Times columnist T.J. Simers: “The Rams may be returning to the Los Angeles area in 2015 under the ownership of Stan Kroenke. Kroenke … Kroenke has some work to do to satisfy NFL cross ownership rules, but he owns a home in the L.A. area, took an interest, along with business partner John Elway, in owning an expansion team in L.A. a few years back, and still counts John Shaw, who engineered the Rams’ move to St. Louis, as one of his good friends. And Shaw has it arranged so the Rams can move again in 2015 if St. Louis doesn’t provide the team with a new stadium.”
http://interact.stltoday.com/blogzone/bernies-extra-points/bernies-extra-points/bernies-5-minutes/2010/04/wednesday-bernie-bytes-rams-pain-blues-payne/