The decision was made by the NFL owners to approve the Chargers move to… Inglewood. It was a NO vote on the move to Carson. The Inglewood vote is an opportunity for the Bolts to be in partnership with the Rams. The stadium there will be amazing..no doubt… Inglewood is a blighted area that is in much need of renovation and repurposing. The Rams deal makes it possible. Good for the Rams!

For the Chargers on the other hand, in my opinion, this is a VERY bad deal for them. Why would any team want to move in with another NFL team in partnership and play second fiddle. In NY you have the Jets and Giants sharing a stadium, that is NY and those two franchises have been in the same city for years and years building fan base and building rivalry.

Make no mistake, if the Chargers move, they will play second fiddle to the Rams. The Bolts have yet to substantiate their claim that 30% of their fan base comes from LA. That comment does not make sense. If that were true, then why leave 70% for 30%? They probably believe they will add more loyal fans in LA and may even believe a large percentage of San Diegans will follow the team to LA. They clearly do not know San Diego Charger fans. We hate LA sports teams…except maybe the Angels who seem like second cousins…If the Chargers were the only team coming to LA, maybe they could grow their brand. However, the Rams spent 49 years in LA. The Chargers spent 1, their original year as an AFL football team. Building their brand in LA will not be easy.

If the Chargers move to Inglewood, they will be playing second fiddle as a franchise to the Rams. They will be second as owners to Billionaire Stan Kronke and second to a rabid Rams fanbase. The Chargers would become LA’s Triple A football franchise. A minor league team in a major league city. Would they make more money in LA than in SD? Maybe, even probably. And, I understand it is a business. But, that business has greater long term viability in SD than in LA, just ask the 1994 Raiders and Rams.

On the other hand, the decision by the NFL owners comes with a great option for Dean Spanos, the Chargers owner. Stay in San Diego, deal in good faith with the local officials, and get a stadium deal done. As a matter of fact, NFL owners have said they will give the Chargers 100 million to STAY in San Diego and help get a stadium deal done! The NFL owners have previously stated that they really like the San Diego market. This is putting their money where their mouth is. This buys the Chargers and the City time to work out a deal, not much time, but time to get it done. The Chargers have until March to decide if they will play in a temporary stadium situation in LA or stay in SD in 2016.

If the Chargers stay in SD, they will play second fiddle to no one. They are San Diego’s team. They are #1 in this town. They may not be able to get a downtown stadium done, which is the desire of the Chargers ownership, but, come on man, Mission Valley is better than Inglewood all day every day. A new stadium in Mission Valley trumps a new stadium in Inglewood EVERY TIME.

So, I’m actually relatively optimistic about the Chargers possibility of staying in SD. Dean Spanos has not done himself any favors in how he has treated the process in Mission Valley, but at the end of the day, if it means keeping our team in SD, the local officials and the Chargers must be willing to play ball.