Wild, WILD Outlaws. KSW's Expansion Franchise.

[packersfan4eva]

Don't do London. Please.

[Gronk4M13]

Good so far.

[kswgrad2012]

More Potential Relocation Cities

August 20, 2011
Associated Press


Yesterday we profiled the five cities most likely to receive an NFL expansion team bid. Today we will profile five cities unlikely to receive a bid, but could welcome an NFL team.





Portland, OR
Portland is a city that always get mentioned whenever NFL expansion talks arise. It's in an ideal location for families, and an NFL team there would gain an instant rivalry with the nearby Seattle Seahawks. But is it optimal? Many think of Portland as a "hipster town" that doesn't have an interest in American football. But with the rise of the Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers at the collegiate level, the state of Oregon is quickly becoming a football state. A new stadium would almost certainly have to be built, unless the Autzen Zoo would be available for use...




Oklahoma City, OK
For a city primarily thought of as a Midwestern hub, Oklahoma City has shown its potential as a loyal fanbase. When Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Region in 2005, the NFL's New Orleans Saints were relocated to San Antonio, while the NBA's New Orleans Hornets called OKC home. The draw to Hornets games by OKC residents was enough for NBA Commisioner David Stern to award the city the Seattle SuperSonics in 2008. Now the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team has done very well, much due to the loyal fan support of the city. Though putting an NFL franchise in OKC may be difficult, with the Dallas Cowboys so close by, the fan support there could be enough for consideration.




Las Vegas, NV
Sin City would be quite the place for an NFL team. Though it's always been known as Party City, Vegas is much more a family city, and a football team would be great for those not wanting to waste their money at the casinos. The problem? There's one enormous roadblock in the way of a Las Vegas-based football team: GAMBLING. That's right, the NFL has strict rules on gambling, and the thought of a potentially corrupting situation in Vegas could doom the league. Although a Vegas bid is extremely unlikely, it's still a fun thing to think about.




Columbus, OH
In the football-crazed state of Ohio, three teams dominate the headlines: the Cincinnati Bengals, the Cleveland Browns, and the Ohio State Buckeyes. Sure, an NFL team in the state capital of Columbus may seem impractical to many, but it may not be as far-fetched an idea. The City of Columbus has been growing rapidly over the past decade, and was even able to gain an NHL team in the Columbus Blue Jackets. It's now the 15th-largest metropolitan area in the country, and could have enough television sets to have a solid NFL viewership. Where would the team play? They could share Crew Stadium (home of MLS's Columbus Crew), or maybe they could play in the stadium pictured above. The students would like that.




Montreal, Canada
People think of Toronto when they think of Canadian football, but lets remember the best team in the CFL right now, the Montreal Alouettes. The French-Canadian town has always been a sports town, from the days of the Montreal Expos of the MLB, to the Montreal Canadiens of the NHL. And of course, there's the Alouettes, winners of numerous Grey Cup titles, and producer of many NFL greats. While the Alouette management may have a problem with another major football team invading its territory, it's likely the residents would take to the team very well.

[kswgrad2012]

Quote: Originally Posted by packersfan4eva

Don't do London. Please.

HIGHLY unlikely a team's going to London.

[kswgrad2012]

Goodell: "Jaguars, Rams are Moving"

August 22, 2011
ESPN.com


Breaking news coming into ESPN, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has announced this morning the two teams that will be leaving their homes to new locations at the end of this season. At this morning's press conference at the NFL Headquarters in New York City, Goodell announced that the Jacksonville Jaguars and St. Louis Rams will be the franchises relocating. This was Goodell at the press conference:

Quote:

Roger Goodell: "At this time, I would like to announce that the NFL owners and I have decided the two teams that will be relocating at the end of the 2011 season. This has been an ongoing process for over a year now as we would like to maximize on potential profits, in an attempt to bring the best experience possible to our fans. Today I am announcing that the Jacksonville Jaguars and St. Louis Rams will be moving to new cities, effective at the end of this season. This decision came after lots of analysis, in which we felt these teams would do much better in more vibrant locations. There are far larger fan bases than those currently in Jacksonville and St. Louis, and the NFL would like to capitalize on those markets."

The league also announced the finalists for the relocation expansion bids.

Quote:

Goodell: "After hiring a third-party consultant to help with the analysis, we have determined five cities that will receive bids for one of the teams. They are Los Angeles, San Antonio, Portland, Toronto and Salt Lake City. We feel these locations will make excellent destinations for NFL football, and we look forward to working with leaders in these cities in the coming weeks and months to make it happen."

So LA, San Antonio, Portland, Toronto and Salt Lake City will have the ability to contest for residency of either the Jaguars or the Rams. It is expected that two of the cities will each be awarded one team. But if LA's bid is strong enough, it is possible that LA could win the rights to BOTH teams. While LA, San Antonio and Toronto were expected to receive bids, Portland and Salt Lake City both come as surprises. Both are in rather football-large markets, but don't necessarily have the big-name appeal of the other three cities. It will be seen over the coming weeks how much of a chance they really have at landing a team.


Stay tuned to SportsCenter and ESPN for more updates of the NFL relocation.

[Cheese2121]

This looks great man! You know I will definitely be on board and following closely. I would love to see the Rams go back home to LA. Voting for Orlando for the Jags. Can't wait to see what happens.

[kswgrad2012]

Quote: Originally Posted by cheese2121

This looks great man! You know I will definitely be on board and following closely. I would love to see the Rams go back home to LA. Voting for Orlando for the Jags. Can't wait to see what happens.

I would love for the LA Rams to come back to life. Let's see if the city can get its act right this time around. (In 2000 they lost out on the eventual Houston Texans.)

As far as Orlando, I'm not sure. Very close to Tampa Bay, and I would love to see another team out west. Maybe San Antonio? We'll see.


Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

[kswgrad2012]

LA, San Antonio Expect Big Bids

August 25, 2011
Associated Press


On Monday the NFL announced the five cities that will have the rights to bid for the residencies of the Jacksonville Jaguars and St. Louis Rams. The league announced that Los Angeles, San Antonio, Portland, Salt Lake City and Toronto, CA will be the cities eligible for bids, and all are expected to invest heavily in their bids. But no one is expected to outbid LA and San Antonio. This past Tuesday, Vegas oddsmakers released the chances each city had of winning its bid for either or both teams. It's pretty clear what the "experts" think will happen.


Los Angeles, CA
Odds of receiving Jaguars: 12-1
Odds of receiving Rams: 4-1
Odds of receiving both: 9-1

San Antonio, TX
Odds of receiving Jaguars: 5-1
Odds of receiving Rams: 9-1
Odds of receiving both: 50-1

Portland, OR
Odds of receiving Jaguars: 20-1
Odds of receiving Rams: 13-1
Odds of receiving both: 66-1

Salt Lake City, UT
Odds of receiving Jaguars: 30-1
Odds of receiving Rams: 19-1
Odds of receiving both: 87-1

Toronto, Canada
Odds of receiving Jaguars: 17-1
Odds of receiving Rams: 36-1
Odds of receiving both: 25-1

Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa

With that in mind, the cities of LA and San Antonio are expected to take no chances, and do everything they can to secure one of the teams. For LA, they're hoping the FIFTH time's the charm. The City of Angels has, in its history, hosted the LA Chargers, LA Rams and LA Raiders. Since then the Chargers have moved to San Diego, the Rams to St. Louis, and the Raiders back to Oakland. While each team was in LA they weren't hugely relevant (in terms of wins & losses), and fan support wasn't huge. Though many Los Angeleans want a team to return to the city, many wonder about the feasibility of having such a team. LA is known as a "fair weather city," and economists wonder if average fans will want to pay top-dollar for an average ticket. After all, tickets to a Los Angeles Lakers basketball game typically costs an arm and a leg. Those in San Antonio are hoping for much better fortunes.

San Antonio mayor Julian Castro

San Antonio has hosted an NFL team in its history, although briefly. The New Orleans Saints were temporarily housed in SA immediately following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. At the time, many thought Saints owner Tom Benson was considering moving the team. When the team found fan support in San Antonio, playing its games at the Alamodome, it was widely considered that San Antonio was a prime destination for the team. But the NFL vetoed the idea, the Saints remained in New Orleans, and in 2010 the Saints would win Super Bowl XLV. But San Antonio's flirtation with NFL football goes back further than that. In 1999 the NFL was sitting at 31 teams, and planning to expand to 32. It was known that Los Angeles was the front-runner to land the new expansion team. But San Antonio had its name in the ring as well. Ultimately LA botched its bid, and in 2000, Houston would be awarded the team under the direction of Bob McNair. The Houston Texans came into existence, and LA once again sat without a team. But many believed that the San Antonio & Houston bids were proof that two, and maybe even THREE teams could co-exist in the state of Texas. 11 years later, San Antonians hope they will finally get the team they've long wanted.