‘Hazing’ of Milstein Group Unwarranted

One week ago, a group led by Howard Milstein bought the Redskins for $800 million. At least it thought it did. Now, the NFL wants a recount.

Apparently, some owners in the NFL are under the misapprehension that the Redskins are an expansion team--reated and controlled by the league to be sold to whomever it pleases and at whatever price.

In fact, the Redskins were owned by Jack Kent Cooke. In his will, he established exactly how he wanted his estate and his team disposed of. Many would be embarrassed to call that will their own. Cooke gave his own son just 10 percent of the team and made him fight the world if he wanted to keep the rest. That’s sad. But it was Jack’s team, not the NFL’s, to sell.

Last week, the Redskins were sold -- fair and square -- after an exhaustive bidding war. The process couldn’t have been more cut and dried or more open to public inspection. Half the cab drivers in town could tell you the scenario. The late Cooke, in a showboat style, set up a public competition for his team, most of the proceeds going to a charitable foundation.

One delicious detail has just emerged. Cooke did not give his money to poor high schoolers who needed a hand up. Instead, it goes to scholarships for graduate school ! (Stop that snickering. Jack Kent Cooke did not find a way to leave hundreds of millions to the overprivileged.)

The only edge that Jack gave John was an instruction to the trustees of his estate that his heir should get the nod if the bidding was close. It wasn’t. The Milstein brothers and Daniel M. Snyder blew everybody away, outbidding the nearest group of competitors, including John Kent Cooke, by more than $80 million.

Now, the league is delaying the sale process. First, the NFL said it couldn’t vote on Milstein’s group by Jan. 28. A decision would have to wait until Feb. 16. This, in itself, was curious since Milstein was vetted and approved by the league when he tried to buy the expansion Browns last September. If he was good enough then, how could he not be okay now?

Then, this week, the NFL took the novel action of actually saying publicly that it prefered to have John Cooke remain in control. Could the NFL Finance Committee please see all the details of John’s final bid? How, exactly, did the trustees chose Milstein?

The franchise finds itself paralyzed at a crucial time. Which free agents should be signed or resigned? Who makes the decisions on those No. 5 and No. 11 overall picks in the draft? Charley Casserly, whose record is, shall we say,not the best when it comes to high draft picks in the ‘90s? Or somebody of the new ownership’s choosing?

The league has really strapped the team, says free agent quarterbackTrent Green, whose contract negotiation is just one of the vital issues that must remain in limbo until the ownership issue is settled. “This is affecting not only me, but a number of people -- the front office, the coaches, other players. The quicker the NFL makes a decision, the better it is for the team,” Green said.

In short, the Redskins are being held hostage by what appears to be frat-house shenanigans among owners who don’t want John Cooke kicked out of their lodge. He’s so friendly.

Why don’t the NFL’s old boys want a couple of guys named Milstein and Snyder in their game? Maybe it’s Howard’s $5-billion net worth that bothers them. Or the almost visible competitiveness of his 34-year-old partner Dan Snyder. Sometimes, rich guys worry about competing against REALLY rich guys. Especially if they also look hungry.

NFL scuttlebutt also has it that older owners worry Milstein may resemble the Cowboys’ Jerry Jones too much when it comes to marketing philosophy. (Let’s not make Coca Cola angry by putting up those Pepsi signs.) Is Al Lerner, owner of the expansion Browns, making waves? In Cleveland society, it’s known that Lerner sees red at the mention of Milstein, who was a rival bidder for the Browns.

So far, butter wouldn’t melt in the Milstein-Snyder group’s mouth. Annoyed? Insulted? Ready to send every lawyer in New York City to surround the NFL offices on Park Avenue? No way. In fact, not even any comment. Some clubs are so exclusive that almost any indignity will be borne to get through the door. Everybody in golf knows Bill Gates would sell pimento sandwiches at The Masters if it would get him an Augusta National membership.

If this is all just hazing NFL-style, the Milstein group will just have to live with it, even though, at the very least, it will hurt the Redskins competitively next season. And for no good reason.

At the least, the NFL owes the Redskins a quick resolution of its ownership issue. What’s wrong with Milstein and Snyder’s money? Who’s pulling back-room strings? And, if Milstein and Snyder are denied, what are the NFL’s motives?