League ‘Optimistic’ About L.A. Team

With four sites scattered around Southern California in play for an NFL team, officials with a league delegation compiling a “progress update” said Wednesday the NFL remains “optimistic” of a return to the nation’s No. 2 market.

The Los Angeles area has been without NFL football since before the 1995 season. The league is now exploring stadium projects at the Coliseum, the Rose Bowl, in Carson and in Anaheim, with an eye toward announcing a deal next spring that would bring the NFL back to the Los Angeles area by 2008. Officials have declined to say whether the league would relocate an existing franchise or create an expansion team in the L.A. area.

League owners are next due to take up the issue in a meeting near Detroit at the end of October. In advance of that meeting, an NFL contingent has been making the rounds this week. “There’s no earth-shattering event,” said Eric Grubman, a senior league executive.

Grubman declined to say if one of the four sites ought to be seen as a front-runner. He said, “We’ve got four sites. All four are working hard. All four are making progress.” He also said, “Overall, we’re optimistic we’re going to get a team here.”

Last week, in what could prove a potent boost to the Coliseum bid, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill that would commit specific tax revenues to the Coliseum area. The money would not go for stadium construction but could help defray surrounding infrastructure costs by $25 million to $30 million.

The bill marked an important test -- both in substance and in public relations value -- of what Assemblyman Mark Ridley-Thomas (D-Los Angeles), in comments Wednesday before the Coliseum Commission, called “public sector resolve.”

-- Alan Abrahamson

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With running back Ricky Williams ready to reverse directions and come out of retirement, his former Miami Dolphin teammates were mixed in their reaction.

Defensive end David Bowens said he would like to see Williams rejoin the Dolphins, in part because they’re 0-4. But Pro Bowl linebacker Zach Thomas said he doubted that help from Williams is on the way.

Gary Ostrow, an attorney who has represented Williams, said the 2002 NFL rushing champion hopes to receive clearance from the league to play again before the Oct. 19 trade deadline so he can be traded by Miami.

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The brother-in-law of Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre died in Hattiesburg, Miss., after crashing an all-terrain vehicle on the player’s property. Casey Tynes, 24, the brother of Favre’s wife, Deanna, was riding the all-terrain vehicle without a helmet when it flipped.

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Oakland Raider running back Tyrone Wheatley is expected to be sidelined two to four weeks because of a shoulder injury. He was hurt in the first quarter of Sunday’ 30-17 loss to Houston after catching a short pass from Kerry Collins. He was tackled for a one-yard loss and landed on his shoulder.