Bernie: Nothing guaranteed with Rams
• By Bernie Miklasz
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_f53d3d86-9308-54e9-a4e0-21620da753ac.html
NFL executive vice president Eric Grubman was in town Thursday for meetings with Dave Peacock and Bob Blitz of the St. Louis stadium task force.
Grubman looms as a key player in the Rams’ potential attempt to move to Los Angeles before the 2016 season. Not only is Grubman in charge of supervising the LA market and monitoring various stadium dreams there, he’s taken an active interest in the Peacock-Blitz quest to get a new stadium off the ground in St. Louis.
The Post-Dispatch was invited to interview Grubman. Here are my primary takeaways from a 25-minute question-and-answer session:
• St. Louis must firm up plans to build a new stadium. That’s mandatory. But you knew that already. Grubman’s advice to St. Louis?
“Take the plan and get it done,” he said.
• It would be smart to act quickly to bring that STL stadium initiative to fruition. “We need to get this project to the point where it’s actionable this calendar year,” Grubman said.
• Grubman is more than a concerned observer. He traveled to St. Louis for meetings for the second time since Dec. 11. “This is not a scenario where we’re going to sit back and say ‘Tell us when you’re ready.’ We’re going to come in and do us much as we can to help them,” Grubman said. “That’s why we’re here.”
• There’s no reason to throw away all hope; the Rams could end up staying here. No, it doesn’t mean it will happen. But for what it’s worth, Grubman indicated that the NFL would like the Rams to remain in St. Louis.
“When Roger Goodell was elected commissioner, one of the main planks of his commissionership, which he’s emphasized repeatedly in the time he’s been commissioner, is 32 teams, strong in their markets,” Grubman said. “Not in some other theoretical market, but strong in their markets. So we have an obligation which we take very seriously, to do whatever it takes to give that a chance. If we fail, it won’t be for a lack of trying.”
• Even though Rams owner Stan Kroenke is a partner in the latest stadium start-up in Los Angeles, he hasn’t told the NFL that he wants to move the Rams there. But: “I’m not going to get into specifics other than he’s said he’s going to keep his options open and he’s looking,” Grubman said.
• Grubman wishes St. Louis had moved at a faster pace to formulate a stadium strategy, but he disagrees with the “too little, too late” theory being espoused by those that assume the Rams are bound for LA.
“I’ve heard that speculation, and I have been part of the effort to encourage St. Louis to do things earlier than has been done,” Grubman said. “But I also recognize that there’s a moment in time, and that moment in time has to be right for everyone. Especially public leadership, which is really required. And civic leadership and business leadership.
“So we’re not overly critical of that. That’s also a recognition of the fact that there’s not a huge amount of time to waste. There are other opportunities, and I don’t care to speculate about probabilities, but those are well known, and the club hasn’t been secret about looking at those. So it’s time to get after it.”
(Grubman was clearly talking about LA as an opportunity.)
• Grubman insisted that all owners will follow the league rules on franchise relocation — Kroenke included.
• Grubman likes what he’s seen of the St. Louis stadium outline, but stressed that it’s early in the process. And he’s right. This is hardly a done deal.
“This is the beginning of the process,” Grubman said. “And (Peacock and Blitz) have a job which in any community is tough to do. These projects are difficult and complicated. And everybody’s got to do their part. We’re really on the front end of that, and the early signs are encouraging.”
In responding to questions, Grubman was positive but pragmatic. He wants to reassure St. Louis of a fair process, but also pushed for urgency.
And now it’s time for some straight talk.
Grubman makes no guarantees. (Why would he? He can’t.) Grubman won’t allow himself or the league to be boxed in on the Rams situation. Grubman repeatedly cited the “subjective judgments” that must be made in assessing the Rams’ future.
The key word there — subjective — gives the NFL ample wiggle room if and when the league owners are asked to vote on a Rams’ move to Los Angeles.
I still believe the NFL will ultimately do what’s best for the NFL.
And history tells us that NFL can do whatever it wants to do.
That’s the bottom line, and it’s important to remember that.
Here’s a telling example. I asked Grubman this question: If the St. Louis stadium plan becomes a reality, is there a scenario in which Kroenke would still be allowed to move the team to LA?
“That’s a great question which I don’t know how to answer because that’s subject to the twin pillars of relocation guideline and votes,” Grubman said. “The relocation guidelines are not absolute etched in stone. There’s subjective judgments that have to be made.
“So I can’t guess that probability. But on the other hand there’s votes, which I don’t control. But what’s clear is, if a market has a franchise, and that franchise has been supported, and can be supported, and that franchise can enjoy a healthy existence, that’s a central plank of Roger Goodell’s commissionership. And I don’t take that lightly.”
Grubman shifted responsibility to the owners and their “subjective judgments.” More to the point, Grubman conceded that the relocation rules aren’t “etched in stone.”
That’s all I needed to hear to wonder (again) if it’s possible to entirely trust the league to enforce its guidelines on relocation. The league’s owners can decide if those guidelines have been met by Kroenke, and they aren’t required to be objective. Kroenke needs 24 votes to gain league approval for a move. If, indeed, he seeks approval.
I believe that Grubman is sincerely trying to provide guidance to Peacock and Blitz, and that his interest in the STL stadium project is genuine. The NFL is getting involved here, and that’s encouraging.
A new stadium is the only shot St. Louis has to stay in the NFL, but it doesn’t ensure that the Rams will be forced to remain here or that another team would move to in to fill the void.
Just as the man said, nothing is etched in stone.
