New Tactic in Battle to Keep the Rams in Town : Pro football: Group believes move to St. Louis is a done deal and will try to block it in the NFL.
The Rams haven’t announced they are moving to St. Louis, but the decision has become such a foregone conclusion to the Save the Rams task force that it has stopped trying to persuade the team to stay in Orange County and is plotting to combat the move.
Save the Rams will hold a news conference this morning outside Anaheim Stadium to announcethat it believes the Rams are about to sign a lease with St. Louis.
But don’t expect a concession speech from Save the Rams co-chairman Leigh Steinberg, who will outline plans to take the fight for the Rams to a forum within the NFL.
“We’re going to give a progress report on where we think the battle goes from here,” said Steinberg, the Newport Beach agent whose firm represents 19 NFL quarterbacks. “This is going to be Phase Two.
“The thing I fear is that when the announcement (that the Rams are moving to St. Louis) comes, there’s going to be so much hoopla that it’s going to be tough to muster a response.”
So Save the Rams will launch something of a preemptive strike. Steinberg wouldn’t elaborate on plans, but the group probably will launch an all-out lobbying assault on NFL owners and Commissioner Paul Tagliabue in an effort to secure the eight votes necessary to block the move.
If the Rams are to adhere to league guidelines for moving, they will need approval from three-fourths of NFL owners (21 of 28) at their March 12-17 meetings.
If owners don’t approve, the Rams could file an antitrust suit against the NFL--as the Raiders did before moving from Oakland to Los Angeles in 1982--to play in St. Louis next season.
Save the Rams probably will call on some political heavyweights--including Gov. Pete Wilson, U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth--to persuade owners that Orange County can support the Rams and deliver on a package that would make them financially competitive.
If the Rams seek to move, the critical period would be from February to early March, when Tagliabue would review their proposal for transfer, which must be submitted to the league 30 days before the March meeting.
The Rams essentially must prove to the league that they can’t survive in Anaheim; that the deal in St. Louis, which includes virtually all revenue from a new 70,000-seat domed stadium, is far superior to the Orange County offer, which includes a renovated stadium, new practice facility, 100 luxury suites and guarantees to purchase 45,000 season tickets.
Save the Rams plans to bombard the league with reasons the Rams can make it in Orange County. The group also might consider legal action against the Rams.
