ESPN.com: Len Pasquarelli on Glazers Dodgers

[Minotaur]

Around the league

By Len Pasquarelli

ESPN.com

Malcolm Glazer

Even amid all the smoke surrounding the potential purchase of the Los Angeles Dodgers by the Glazer family, which owns the Tampa Bay Bucs and would have to make some move with the NFL franchise to come into compliance with league cross-ownership rules, it's still a long shot that the Super Bowl champions will change hands. But adding to the foggy shroud of what might become of the Bucs, should Malcolm Glazer get the Dodgers, is this tidbit: Former San Francisco 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr., who lives in the Tampa area and has long been rumored to be interested in the Bucs, has recently started touching base with some old NFL acquaintances. Word is that DeBartolo, who doesn't have the juice himself to purchase an NFL franchise but certainly could quickly assemble an ownership group, has been polling his friends about whether he could ever be approved to return to the league. DeBartolo knows that, after the Louisiana fiasco in which he attempted to grab a piece of the casino industry and shuffled funds to former Gov. Edwin Edwards, some of the so-called "old guard" NFL owners might never endorse his return. Hey, in the long run, Eddie D. may not be seeking a comeback. But he's certainly seeking opinions from NFL people with whom he was once very close. As for Glazer and the Dodgers, well, NFL officials are keenly aware of his interest in one sport's most high-profile franchises. But those same officials contend that Glazer has not even hinted to them that he is prepared to sell his football team.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/columns/pasquarelli_len/1541039.html

[MikeG]

Last year on the way to the stadium to see a Bucs game, Eddie D passed us in a Police car led caravan. He probably just flew in/helicoptered in to Tampa airport (we were on Spruce).

Must be nice to have that kind of ca$h. I would like to see him take over the Bucs and perhaps even act with one scant bit of decency in terms of raking the Tampa Bay community over the coals. Anyone see the latest issue with the Sports Authority trying to give ownership of the stadium to Hillsborough county (to avoid property tax)?  The Glaziers are trying to piggy back in FREE terrorist/storm disaster insurance costing about $1 MM a year just to let the TSA make this simple move. SO any money they might save by giving the property goes where? You guessed it-- straight into the Glaziers pockets. Man they are the greediest bastards on the planet. How many zillions did they just make off the Superbowl victory? They still need more handouts from the people of Tampa.

Screw them TSA-- keep the property, do not offer up the additional insurance, and let the property tax money go to where it truly belongs-- Hillsborough County.

[Markeymark]

Straight into the Glazer's pockets...how about straight into all these free agents' pockets. Personally, I don't have a problem with the Glazers and their strong-arm tactics as long as the Bucs keep winning. Would you rather go back to those trust fund lawyers the Bucs used to have running the team? Didn't think so...

[TripleB]

Straight into the Glazer's pockets...how about straight into all these free agents' pockets. Personally, I don't have a problem with the Glazers and their strong-arm tactics as long as the Bucs keep winning. Would you rather go back to those trust fund lawyers the Bucs used to have running the team? Didn't think so...

Remember that there is a salary cap. All of this extra money they're making by being ****** members of the community is not being spent on players. The players' salaries are covered way before they start this nickel and dime crap with the city and county.  

They are, however, head and shoulderes above the Culverhouse regime, but also remember one thing. Hugh baby owned the team when there was no salary floor for players either. If the Glazers didn't have to spend a certain amount on player salaries every year, this winning philosophy of theirs may never have materialized ....

[MikeG]

The current salary cap establishes no floor whatsoever. they could pay less but the talent would be non-existent. No pay = no players = no championship

[TripleB]

The current salary cap establishes no floor whatsoever. they could pay less but the talent would be non-existent. No pay = no players = no championship

Mike, there's no longer a minimum amount they have to spend on players?? I thought there was one at one time ..... When did it go away?

[MikeG]

Well-- if you want to get completely crazy about it, they could attempt to pay the league minimum for all their players. That minimum is based on years in the NFL and goes up incrementally. Something like 300,000 (rookie) to 500,000 (3 years) to 700,000 (5 years). Not sure if you have to declare a franchise player, but that would mean you must pay someone at least equal to the top five for their position. So maybe you declare the punter your franchise player (which may very well be true with this group of scrubs you have acquired).

The point is that no team would bother doing that because they would draw squat and be out business faster than a Jeffrey Daumer sausage stand.

I do not know if there is a league minimum you have to pay as a team. The point is you will not suceed in making any profits if you go that route as a team or as a business. It's pointless to even think of doing this-- you just make your team **** near worthless and therefore would lose cash from the purchase price (unless you are Art Modell).