California Dreaming

Chargers, Raiders and Rams All Eye Relocation to Los Angeles

Christmas of 1994 was not so merry for fans of the Los Angeles Raiders and Los Angeles Rams because both teams would pack up and relocate the following season making Christmas Eve of that year the final time pro football would be played in Los Angeles.

The Rams ended up with a record of 4–12 in 1994 and dropped their final game at Anaheim Stadium to the Washington Redskins 24–21 in front of a crowd of only 25,000 fans. The Raiders, on the other hand, finished the season a respectable 9–7, but failed to reach the playoffs as they dropped their final home game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to the Joe Montana led Kansas City Chiefs 19–9. Many believed the NFL would suffer without football in the nation’s second largest media market (second only to New York), but in fact the exact opposite has happened with the NFL brand growing larger and larger by the year.

Over the years, there has been much speculation of one or possibly both teams headed back to Los Angeles and with both teams in desperate need of a new stadium, perhaps no other time has made more sense than now to make the move back to Southern California. The Raiders and Rams however, are not the only teams rumored to be making the move to Los Angeles, now the Chargers who currently play in San Diego have also gained momentum of a possible relocation.

The NFL owners meetings on January 12 and 13 will be key dates for not only the three franchises, but also the league because a decision is expected to be made that could shape the entire landscape of the NFL. Houston will be the location of the meeting where the voting will take place among the owners of potential relocation and stadium deals in Carson or Inglewood. Each team is required to tally 24 of 32 votes from the owners and then pay a relocation fee of $550 million according to the NFL.

With the Chargers, Raiders, and Rams in the mix, we now examine what each team would bring to the table.

Chargers: While the Chargers spent their inaugural season in Los Angeles, they’ve hardly got a history here at least compared to the Rams and Raiders. Geographically the Chargers make the most sense, however having been in San Diego since 1961, the team has really developed a loyal fan base over the years. The Chargers final home game of 2015 was an emotional affair with hundreds of fans bringing signs begging the team to stay in San Diego. The emotion was not just felt by the fans as several players, including quarterback Philip Rivers, were seen leaving the field with tears in their eyes. Another, factor to consider with the Chargers is the stadium situation. The Chargers have been playing at Qualcomm Stadium (Formerly San Diego and Jack Murphy Stadium) since 1967 and are in desperate need of an upgrade. More and more teams are constructing state of the art stadiums with the latest amenities and “The Q” is far from luxurious. Many football fans including Charger fans are calling Qualcomm the worst stadium in the NFL and have given it a mediocre 2.5/5 star rating on sites such as yelp. Not only is Qualcomm unsuitable for the fans but also the media. Popular radio personality Steve Mason of ESPN Los Angeles was recently at Qualcomm covering the USC vs. Wisconsin Holiday Bowl game and sent out a series of tweets regarding the media’s dismay of the stadium.

Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers, who recently agreed to a five-year contract extension has been one of the most consistent quarterbacks over the past decade. The extension also makes it more and more likely that Rivers will have spent his entire playing career with the Chargers which in sports is an extremely rare feat for one player to spend their entire career with one team. Rivers, a five-time Pro Bowler, is perhaps looking for one last run at a title and will certainly be playing with a chip on his shoulder as he looks to lead the Chargers back to the Promised Land.

Raiders: The Raiders only spent 13 seasons in Los Angeles (1982–94), but during that time, the team developed a very passionate following. Another notable feat accomplished by the Raiders during their time in L.A. was the team’s third Super Bowl victory which came in 1983 and still stands as the only time a team from L.A. has won the Super Bowl. Despite winning the Super Bowl in the 1983 season, the Raiders success faded as the team was unable to get back to the Super Bowl and even missed out on the playoffs four consecutive seasons from 1986–89. Much like the Chargers, the stadium was also an issue for the Raiders who played at the 95,000 seat L.A. Coliseum in which the team constantly struggled to fill.

One thing is certain, the Raiders made an impact on the city of Los Angeles, and most notably with rap group N.W.A. ,who began sporting the Raider logo at their shows. Even today, the presence of the Raiders is still felt in Los Angeles, so much that the Raiders even have their own team store at Universal City Walk. The impact the Raiders still have on Southern California is enormous considering the fact that when the Raiders are the visiting team in games against other teams in California, their fan base turn out is equal or sometimes even larger than the home team they are playing.

A move to back to L.A. for the Raiders would not only reunite the team to the fans who were loyal before they left, but also open the door to a brand new generation of younger fans. The Raiders would also be attractive with their on-field product in the form of their three rising stars including quarterback-wide receiver duo Derek Carr and Amari Cooper as well as linebacker Khalil Mack who look to lead the team back to the days when the Raiders were among the NFL’s elite.

Rams: The Rams spent 48 years in Southern California before being moved to St. Louis in 1995 and since then, local fans have been clamoring for a return to Southern California. A group of die-hard fans have even taken matters into their own hands by creating a website (www.losangelesrams.org) full of information and galleries of fan rallies to gather support for a return. The same group has also created a Facebook page titled “Bring Back the Los Angeles Rams” which has over 57,000 “likes” and focuses on keeping fans updated on any news regarding the team and the relocation process.

The fact that the Rams didn’t win a Super Bowl while in LA may perhaps be one of the biggest reasons why fans want them to come back. As mentioned earlier, the Raiders victory in Super Bowl XVIII remains the only occurrence in which a professional football team from L.A. has won a title. The emotional attachment is evident as with any team that has gone a long period of time without winning a championship, the fans tend to be more passionate just ask Chicago Cubs fans. While the Rams did claim the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl XXXIV, they were in St. Louis as L.A. Rams fans were forced to watch from a distance.

One player to watch from the in the coming years Rams is running-back Todd Gurley who had a stellar rookie season despite missing the first two games. Gurley rushed for the third most amount of yardage in 2015, was selected to the Pro Bowl and looks to be one of the favorites for offensive rookie of the year. There is no doubt that should the Rams return to LA and win a Super Bowl, there will be an emotionally-charged victory parade through the streets of L.A. and although for L.A. Rams fans just bringing them home would be a major victory in itself worthy of a parade.

While the average attendance of NFL games has been slowly declining over the years thanks to new technology, the demand for the NFL is at an all time high and something tells me that there won’t be much problem filling the stadiums in a city that has been without pro football for over 20 years.