After Further Review, NFL Votes to Keep Replay

The hamburgers at this swank resort are $11, the turkey wrap $8, the NFL baloney, however, is free.

After four days of meetings at the Breakers, Commissioner Paul Tagliabue called a news conference to announce the league’s 31 owners have discussed the issue of violence off the field, and have come to the conclusion it will continue to discuss the matter.

Let the mayhem continue--there is going to be no rush to judgment here.

In another bold move, the league passed a two-year measure to establish an NFL network, a move to corner NFL content on the Internet with clubs agreeing, as they did in 1961 when they struck a deal with the TV networks, to share all revenue.

The Internet proposal received 23 votes, raising the question of how it passed without the required 24 votes from the league’s 31 owners?

A league spokesman explained that Viking owner Red McCombs was not in the room, and while the Internet might be far reaching, it apparently does not yet stretch to the hotel pool.

In other NFL developments:

* The league approved the return of instant replay as it was used a year ago. Kansas City, Cincinnati and Arizona voted against it, but the remaining 28 teams--McCombs had toweled off--were in favor of extending replay for another year.

* The league voted 30-0 with St. Louis abstaining when it came time to ban the “Bob ‘N Weave.” From now on if two or more players show any excitement, they will be fined and sent to bed without dinner.

“The coaches said across the board that players on their teams regarded it as provocative and might bring about retaliation,” Tagliabue said. “The coaches felt it was very negative to spend time before a game trying to cool players down.”

This will allow players to bang their helmets and shoulder pads against each other before the game without interruption.

* The league is considering a change in its scheduling format in anticipation of realignment when Houston begins play in 2002. The league has already indicated it will divide teams into eight four-team divisions, and now there’s talk of expanding the playoffs from 12 teams to 14.

* Arizona owner Bid Bidwill continues to make plans to possibly make a move on Los Angeles, suggesting it might be time to put the California Border Patrol on alert.

Bidwill’s son, Michael, is spearheading the legislative effort to secure funds for a new stadium in Arizona, but Bill Bidwill does not expect to do a deal in Arizona and has had an associate let it be known to L.A. parties that he might be willing to sell a portion of his team in exchange for doing a deal in Los Angeles.

“The league can’t let that team go to Los Angeles,” said one NFL owner. “You can’t take that organization with the history that it has and expect a warm reception. When we go back to Los Angeles we have to make sure it’s a success.”

That won’t preclude Bidwill loading the trucks in the middle of the night and showing up in Los Angeles, however, as one NFL official noted.

Fortunately, if he’s driving, it’s a good bet he’ll get lost.

* Pre-draft speculation now has Cleveland taking Penn State defensive end Courtney Brown, Washington following with Alabama offensive tackle Chris Samuels and Penn State linebacker LaVar Arrington, Cincinnati grabbing Florida State wide receiver Peter Warrick and Baltimore with the fifth pick taking running back Shaun Alexander.

Cincinnati is shopping running back Corey Dillon, and Baltimore, which also has the 15th pick in the first round, appears interested in surrendering it along with an additional third-round choice for the Bengal back.

* Making like Ryan Leaf, Charger owner Alex Spanos raised the ire of San Diego citizens after putting his foot in his mouth and telling an Internet reporter here that he needs a new stadium or else.

The city of San Diego has already lost millions of dollars because it agreed to renovate Qualcomm Stadium in exchange for guaranteeing sellouts for 10 years. The Chargers do not usually sell out, forcing the city to buy thousands of tickets.

The media in San Diego interpreted Spanos’ “or else” declaration as a threat that he might move to Los Angeles.

Why is it only the crummy teams want to move to Los Angeles?

* The announcement that NBC has bought a piece of the XFL, World Wrestling Federation CEO Vince McMahon’s new football enterprise to debut in eight cities including Los Angeles next February, drew a yawn from Tagliabue.

“I’ve been so busy here thinking about our agenda that I don’t have any thought about it,” he said.

NBC paid $30 million for the (fixed?) football games and expects to turn a profit in three years.

“NBC’s greatest interest in this was the ability to attract the most elusive audience in all of television--to get young males to the TV set,” said Dick Ebersol, president of NBC Sports. “We’re partnered up with the best marketer and promoter in all of sports today for reaching that young audience.”

There is no indication at this time if two or more XFL players will be allowed to show emotion without fear of being fined. It goes without saying, of course, that throwing chairs at each other will be allowed.