With the Rams, Raiders, and Chargers wanting to move to Los Angeles and St. Louis, Oakland, and San Diego not doing enough (in the opinion of the league) to justify staying put, it’s time for the NFL’s 32 owners to come up with a solution.
Per multiple league sources, the solution could be this: A Rams-Chargers forced marriage, in Inglewood or Carson.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has been pushing the Inglewood angle, which would give Rams owner Stan Kroenke what he covets (his own stadium in the L.A. area) and which would give Chargers owner Dean Spanos what he covets (a one-way ticket out of San Diego). Jones, per multiple sources, has submitted a resolution in advance of next week’s special ownership meeting in Houston aimed at forcing that specific outcome.
The Chargers are expected to push for Carson as the location of a shared venue with the Rams, if the NFL is inclined to compel that outcome. In Carson, the two teams would be true partners; in Inglewood, Kroenke would have the upper hand, as it relates to the surrounding development.
Regardless of location, a Rams-Chargers combo platter would leave the Raiders out in the cold. To get owner Mark Davis to go along with that, the total deal would likely include enough extra money to allow for Davis to build a new stadium in Oakland, or to otherwise give him a solution the mess he still has there.
Ultimately, 24 owners have to get behind whatever the league decides to do. If Chargers only (it’s close to 24) or Rams only (it’s not nearly as close to 24) can’t get it done, Chargers-Rams could.