Cowboys owner Jerry Jones got into a bit of hot water last week when he suggested that the St. Louis Rams could relocate without the league's permission. So what did he tell Roger Goodell when the commissioner called him? He apparently gave the ole "I don't remember" line.
Jerry Jones tells Roger Goodell he doesn’t remember comments on Rams moving to L.A.
Goodell called up the Cowboys owner to get clarification on comments he made last week suggesting the Rams don’t need permission to relocate.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
“Jerry wasn’t even quite sure what he said beyond acknowledging historically teams have moved without (permission),” NFL executive Eric Grubman, who was briefed on Goodell’s and Jones’ discussion, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “So when asked, ‘Did you say that?’ he wasn’t even sure.”
Whether Goodell really bought that is up for debate, but there’s no doubt the league has a vested interest in playing down this issue -- something it’s doing by claiming Jones’ statement was a heat-of-the-moment reaction in the immediate aftermath of Dallas’ playoff loss to Green Bay.
"Put (Jones' remarks) in context," Grubman said. "This man's trying to get to the Super Bowl. He was in Green Bay, Wisc., and he just lost an incredible game. A lot of passion and emotion. And he gets hit with that question from an out-of-town reporter."
“Now, is that impossible?” Grubman asked. “What if you just lost that game and somebody hit you with that question? ... I’m not going to speak for him. But I’ll hazard a guess on this one, that he would not tell you this could be done without a vote. To suggest otherwise would be to suggest that any owner can pick which rules they want to go for a vote and which they don’t want to go for a vote.”
Jones’ statement came after Rams owner Stan Kroenke said he plans on building an 80,000-seat stadium in Los Angeles, stirring speculation that he wants to move the team. It’s generally accepted that in order to relocate, a franchise needs 24 of 32 owners votes, but Jones threw doubt on that when questioned.
“As it would turn out now, apart from the league saying no, you can move there,” he said. “Keep in mind that teams have moved without the permission of the league. They just have.”
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