The NFL Will Not Move A Team To Los Angeles For 2015

The three most likely NFL teams to move to Los Angeles—the Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers, and St. Louis Rams—will be staying where they are next season. All three of those teams have expiring leases with their current stadiums, but the NFL won't move a franchise to L.A. until a permanent site for the team is established.

Here are the particulars, via NFL.com:

The Chargers made the announcement earlier in the week that they are staying in San Diego next season, a clear sign that no one would be there next season. Had they thought another team could move to L.A. this year, they would've stayed in play. League sources confirmed this, saying neither of the other two teams whose leases allow them to move — the Rams and the Raiders are the others — will move this year.

Before the Raiders, the Rams or the Chargers bolt, the league decided the focus should be on finding the best site before finding the best team or teams for Los Angeles. There is no scenario that involves a team heading to Los Angeles in a temporary site and then figuring out a stadium later.

With that in mind, the spotlight now shines on three sites: Hollywood Park, where Rams owner Stan Kroenke owns land; Carson, California, which has 172 acres that has been scouted by at least two NFL teams; and AEG's site that would create a downtown stadium. Those spots have shown themselves to be the viable ones.

The teams have been saying the "right things" about the situation, promising they will pursue every option to remain in their current city. But the NFL is going to move back to Los Angeles sooner rather than later. And when it happens, it will happen quickly, and whichever team moves won't be looking back as they haul out of town.

[ NFL.com]

Photo via AP