Spring forward
By Charles Robinson, Yahoo! Sports
May 21, 2006
DENVER – For the first time in more than a year, Paul Tagliabue can attend a NFL meeting and leave his impassioned speeches at home.
After almost a solid year of bickering over the collective bargaining agreement, rule alterations and an announcement that Tagliabue was stepping down, the NFL is expecting a low-key spring meeting on Tuesday.
While there are plenty of vital issues that will be discussed – the future site of the Los Angeles franchise, the search for a new commissioner and some discussion about altering the numbering system for jerseys – the meetings are expected to come and go with a relative yawn.
With that in mind, here is where the three central issues stand heading into Monday's committee meetings and Tuesday's gathering with the full collection of owners:
The future site of the Los Angeles franchise will be the biggest topic of discussion with a slim chance that a stadium site could be chosen by owners Tuesday. The working group that is handling the L.A. franchise will meet Monday and hear a proposal from city officials, who will pitch an $800 million plan to essentially build a new stadium within the outside shell of the L.A. Coliseum.
This was expected to be the meeting in which the owners would choose a new site, but there has been hedging from Tagliabue about making such a commitment this week. For now, there are two frontrunners for the Los Angeles franchise – the renovated Coliseum plan and a site in Anaheim. The Rose Bowl in Pasadena also could draw consideration, but it appears to be a long shot.
While California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently lobbied for the NFL to place two teams in the area, that seems an unlikely scenario for a group of owners who appear to have their hands full simply trying to get the track set for one team. The Los Angeles planning won't delve into issues beyond a site at these meetings. Talks about whether the site would be given an expansion team or allowed to draw a relocated franchise aren't likely to happen before 2008.
There doesn't appear to have been any substantial movement in the search for Tagliabue's replacement, and it would be a shocker if the eight-man committee of owners put forward a candidate when all of the owners convene Tuesday. All indications are that Tagliabue will remain in his current position at least until training camp and possibly the balance of the 2006 season.
The rules committee is expected to discuss changing the numbering system for jerseys and allowing running backs and receivers to choose digits between 1 and 49. The possible change has gotten a lot of attention due to rookie running back Reggie Bush's request to wear No. 5, and thusly been dubbed "The Bush Rule" by some league insiders. Support for the change appears to be soft, but if it were to go to a vote at these meetings – and that isn't expected – the new system wouldn't take effect until 2007.
