Rams' new headquarters to be centerpiece of ambitious Warner Center development project

For the Rams, a house isn’t necessarily a home.

There’s the Sunday sanctuary of SoFi Stadium — also known as Rams House — but the franchise that returned to Los Angeles in 2016 has turned its attention to creating a permanent home in Woodland Hills, where it will spend the other six days of the week.

Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who built the $5-billion stadium in Inglewood, has provided The Times a detailed and exclusive first look at the next major project for his NFL team: a state-of-the-art team headquarters, surrounded by a glistening new residential and retail community intended to be the long-awaited centerpiece of the San Fernando Valley.

In bringing the NFL back to Los Angeles and constructing a state-of-the-art venue — a place where the Chargers also play — Kroenke provided a proof of concept. SoFi Stadium renderings were more than pretty pictures; they came to life.

Now the billionaire developer is focusing more sharply on a 100-acre, L-shaped site at Warner Center, roughly 30 miles northwest of the Inglewood stadium. He plans to create a permanent home for the Rams — replacing their temporary digs there — surrounded by a high-end residential and retail district with apartments, offices, stores and restaurants, parks and other green spaces, and two new entertainment venues.

“We are well positioned to get going,” Kroenke told The Times last week at the annual NFL meetings. “We’re working hard on it and it’s exciting.”

Why unveil the plans now? Kroenke, with the help of global architectural firm Gensler, plans to submit initial plans to Los Angeles city officials within the coming weeks, and informing the public is part of that process. Developers hope to put shovels in the ground by early 2027, and once underway, the entire project should require about a decade to complete all phases.

“I’m excited about it,” said Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who represents the northwest corner of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley, including Woodland Hills. “That space that they’re taking over is such prime real estate and has been so under-utilized, dormant even, for the last decade or more. It is so ripe for becoming a centerpiece for the West Valley and the city of L.A., an anchor.”

Although the Hollywood Park site is three times the size of the one in Warner Center, and Kroenke is continuing to develop that massive district in Inglewood, the latest endeavor likewise will command an investment of more than $10 billion.

“If you look at what we’ve done in Inglewood, this is a piece of cake,” said Otto Maly, president of Kroenke Holdings, citing the wealthier demographic of Woodland Hills and the surrounding areas.

Football is only one aspect of this project, albeit a major one. The Rams, who relocated to the site from Thousand Oaks last year, will keep their two existing outdoor fields and add an indoor practice field and permanent offices. The plans call for a swooping design complementary of the stylish curvature of their stadium.

Just as the YouTube Theater is sidled next to SoFi Stadium, two smaller entertainment venues — with capacities of 5,000 and 2,500 people — will neighbor Rams headquarters. Those will host concerts and similar events.

“You start to think about, ‘Hey, how do we get more live entertainment so that the people in that part of the Valley don’t always have to drive 45 minutes to an hour to go to a concert?’” said Kevin Demoff, president of the Rams. “This project provides that.”

The 100 acres are broken into three parcels, with Topanga Village, an existing open-air shopping center to the north that will remain as is, and two square parcels to the south. The Rams’ facility, both the current temporary one and the future permanent one, sit on the eastern parcel. In addition to team headquarters, that piece of land is home to the 13-story former Anthem building, which will be “re-skinned” to look like a new structure.

The western parcel contains the defunct Promenade mall and will be entirely redeveloped to include apartment buildings, playgrounds, band shells, alfresco dining, a large grocery store and another featuring specialty foods, all surrounding a 1½-acre central gathering space.

The renderings for the Warner Center redesign feature buildings that are sleek and modern but not outlandishly daring or unconventional. Lots of balconies and outdoor spaces, including park-like green spaces on the tops of structures.

“We’ve been very selective in the design of our buildings so that they’re not faddish,” Maly said. “You see some people go out and build a building, and in three years it’s very dated because of the colors, or they try to get cute. It becomes dated very quickly.”

Even though this will significantly reshape the landscape, this plan doesn’t come out of the blue. This type of redevelopment was first approved and entitled in 2013 for the entire Warner Center area and proposed a dense urban environment.

Seven years later, mall developer Westfield rolled out plans for an economically viable community to replace the outdated Promenade. In later purchasing that site, Kroenke essentially bought those entitlements.

But with more people working from home, and increasing reliance on shopping online, the original Westfield plans needed updating. What’s more, Kroenke’s goals for the site are different, including building team headquarters onto the site and infusing the Rams brand throughout.

“When we did Hollywood Park, it was revitalizing what was once a great sports area from the heyday of the Forum and the racetrack,” Demoff said. “That was bringing that back to life and rekindling the community. It wasn’t unfamiliar to that area.

“Here, it’s really investing in the Valley for the first time ever by a sports team and really by a major community. There’s never been a hub of the Valley.

“By all of our metrics, if the Valley were its own NFL city, it would be the 14th-largest NFL city, and that’s if you got rid of the rest of Los Angeles. When you think about that opportunity to go bring a sports-and-entertainment district hub to the Valley, which has its own heartbeat, lifestyle and culture, it’s really unique.”

The original Westfield plan called for a 10,000-seat venue, which could mean crowds and congestion — or crickets — depending on the day. Kroenke’s plan breaks those 10,000 seats into three venues (including 2,500 lining the indoor practice field) and locates them in the neighboring parcel, a short walk from the residential district.

“The larger the venue, the more infrequent the events,” said Eric Stultz, Gensler design principal. “With smaller venues, you have more events and you can syncopate the energy level of the area, keeping it more consistent. As a result, the disruption of the neighborhood is lower. It’s more of a steady hum than an infrequent lurching of people.”

Medical facilities are often part of NFL team headquarters, and there’s a strong likelihood there will be that component for the Rams, particularly with their team doctor being Neal ElAttrache, among the world’s preeminent sports surgeons.

There’s plenty of room for Rams headquarters at Hollywood Park, but that’s not optimal for multiple reasons. In approving the Rams’ relocation from St. Louis, the NFL stipulated that the Chargers, were they to move there from San Diego, would get equal representation on that site. So there’s no turning that whole place royal blue and yellow. (The Chargers subsequently built their futuristic practice facility, “The Bolt,” on 14 acres in El Segundo.)

Creating a second epicenter in Woodland Hills allows the Rams to significantly increase the size of their footprint in the market.

“When you’re looking to do a practice facility, you don’t need to be right in the middle of everything, and typically that real estate is very expensive,” Kroenke said. “We built an identity in the Valley, with Cal Lutheran, and a lot of our players and families are up there. Our experience was really good.”

Read more:Former Rams great Andrew Whitworth pushes for NFL offensive lineman award

Stultz was design director for the Star in Frisco, Texas, headquarters of the Dallas Cowboys. Specifically, he oversaw the Ford Center, the athletic center that consumes roughly a third of the 91-acre project. The Cowboys are at the cutting edge of NFL marketing, and the Star, which opened in 2016, is as much a crown jewel to the franchise as AT&T Stadium.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said having a signature practice facility, one fans can visit and tour, is a force multiplier when it comes to marketing a franchise.

“It’s like the Sistine Chapel being something that all Catholics think about all over the world,” Jones said. “Many of our fans that know about the Star have never actually been there, but they’re aware of it through just following the Cowboys and our games. It gives you another way to tangibly have another church house to preach in.”

In that respect, Kroenke is ready to step up to the pulpit.

“The master plan was to bring some kind of central core to the Valley,” the Rams owner said. “This is definitely fully capable of creating that.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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In Roob's Observations: Trying to understand the Dallas Goedert situation

In Roob's Observations: Trying to understand the Dallas Goedert situation originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Trying to understand the Dallas Goedert situation, an insane stat about Eagles quarterbacks and the Super Bowl and some thoughts about Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.

As we roll along toward the draft, schedule release day and OTAs – and opening day in just 151 days – here’s a fresh batch of Roob’s Random Eagles Offseason Observations!

1A. Listening to Howie Roseman and Nick Sirianni at the owners meetings, it sure sounds like Dallas Goedert is already gone. When coaches and GMs start using the past tense to talk about a player, it’s never a good sign. I get it. Goedert is 30, he can’t get through a season healthy and he’s due $15 ½ million in 2025. That won’t work. What I don’t get is why the Eagles and Goedert can’t figure out a deal that makes sense for both sides. Goedert has to know his value on the open market isn’t going to be very high, so why not agree to a pay cut and have a chance to stay in Philly and play for a perennial Super Bowl contender? And the Eagles have to know they’re a better team with Goedert on the field than gone. Since 2020, Goedert has averaged 50.7 yards per game – 5^th-most in the league among tight ends who’ve played at least 50 games. And look at his postseason production – 17-for-215 with a TD this year in the playoffs, 52-for-562 with four TDs in his career in the playoffs. On top of all that, the Eagles just don’t have a successor. Grant Calcaterra is OK but he’s not a TE1. They signed a couple guys, but they’re just guys. They could draft a tight end, but who knows what you’re going to get? It makes sense for everybody for Goedert to be here on a sensible deal, and it’s surprising that so far they haven’t figured out a way to make that happen.

1B. Goedert also had 16 catches in the 2022 postseason, and he’s one of only five tight ends in NFL history with multiple postseasons with 16 or more catches. The six others are Travis Kelce, Rob Gronkowski, Zach Ertz and Dallas Clark. Damn good company.

2. I’m not being critical of Josh Sweat and there’s no question he was huge in the Super Bowl with 2 ½ sacks. Sweat was a good player here, but he wasn’t a great player. He played hard all the time, he was tough and physical against the run and he almost never missed a game or a snap. And good for him for getting $76.4 million over four years from the Patriots with $38 million guaranteed. But I wouldn’t have paid him that much. Looking at the big picture, Sweat is a middle-of-the-pack edge rusher. Since he became a full-time player in 2019, he has 43 sacks, which is 26^th-most in the league during that six-year span. He’s never had more than 11 sacks in a season. He went eight straight games to finish 2022 without a sack and then the first three games of 2023. As effective as he was in the Super Bowl, he had one sack in eight games leading up to New Orleans. Sweat averaged 0.41 sacks per game as an Eagle. Mike Mamula averaged 0.41 sacks per game as an Eagle. Nolan Smith is going to be a star. Jalyx Hunt has a world of potential. And the draft is full of impact edge rushers. The Eagles will miss Sweat. He’s a fine player, and you’d love to have him back if it made financial sense. But losing him isn’t the end of the world.

3A. How about Bill Bradley’s first two years as a starting safety? In 1971, he led the NFL with 11 interceptions and in 1972 he led the NFL with nine interceptions. Six other NFL players have had nine or more INTs in consecutive seasons, but Bradley is the last to do it and the only player to do it in the last 60 years. Those 11 INTs are still a franchise record and his nine a year later are still tied for second. That’s 20 interceptions in his first 28 starts (he was the Eagles’ punter in 1969). He finished with 34 INTs as an Eagle, tied with Eric Allen and Brian Dawkins for the franchise record. Bradley, a 3^rd-round pick out of Texas in 1969, was a three-time Pro Bowler and two-time 1^st-team all-pro for the Eagles. Bradley also punted 213 times without ever having a punt blocked. Only 16 punters in NFL history have punted more than Bradley without a block. Chris Gardocki has the record with 1,177 punts without a block. Bradley went into the Eagles Hall of Fame back in 1993. Now you know everything about Bill Bradley.

3B. For those of you who are dying to know, the six other players in NFL history with consecutive seasons with at least nine interceptions are Frank Reagan of the Giants (10 in 1947, nine in 1948), Tom Keane of the Dallas Texas and Colts (10 in 1952 with the Texans, 11 in 1952 with the Colts), Tommy Morrow of the Raiders (10 in 1962, 9 in 1963, then only played one more season), Bobby Boyd of the Colts (9 in both 1964 and 1965), Don Doll of the Lions (11 as a rookie in 1949, 12 in 1950) and Hall of Famer Jack Butler of the Steelers (10 in 1957, 9 in 1958).

3C. For those of you curious about Frank Reagan, he was actually a Philly native and played football at Northeast Catholic and Penn and finished his career with the Eagles and played on the 1949 NFL Championship team. He had 15 interceptions in three seasons with the Eagles.

4. This is insane, but the Eagles are one of only five teams in NFL history to draft two different quarterbacks who’ve won a Super Bowl, and Howie Roseman is one of only two general managers to draft two quarterbacks who’ve won Super Bowls for the team that drafted them. There are 13 teams who’ve won Super Bowls with more than one quarterback: The Ravens (Trent Dilfer, Joe Flacco), Cowboys (Roger Staubach, Troy Aikman), Packers (Bart Starr, Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers), Chiefs (Len Dawson, Patrick Mahomes), Giants (Phil Simms, Jeff Hostetler, Eli Manning), Raiders (Jim Plunkett, Ken Stabler), Eagles (Nick Foles, Jalen Hurts), Steelers (Terry Bradshaw,  Ben Roethlisberger), 49ers (Joe Montana, Steve Young), Buccaneers (Brad Johnson, Tom Brady) and Washington (Joe Theismann, Doug Williams, Mark Rypien). Dilfer was drafted by Tampa, Peyton Manning was drafted by the Colts, Dawson was drafted by the Steelers, Plunkett by the Patriots, Young by the Buccaneers, Theismann by the Dolphins and Williams by the Bucs. That leaves the Cowboys, Packers, Giants, Steelers and Eagles as the only teams to draft two QBs who won Super Bowls for the team that drafted them. For Dallas, Staubach was drafted in 1964 by Tex Schramm and Aikman in 1989 by Jerry Jones. Starr was drafted in 1956 and Rodgers in 2006 – 14 GMs apart. Bradshaw was drafted in 1970, some 30 years before Kevin Colbert became Steelers GM and drafted Big Ben in 2004. That leaves Howie Roseman, who drafted Nick Foles in the third round in 2012 and Jalen Hurts in the second round in 2020, and George Young, who drafted Simms in the first round in 1979 and Jeff Hostetler in the third round in 1984, as the only GMs in history to draft more than one Super Bowl-winning quarterback. #Howieball.

5. Only 11 quarterbacks in NFL history drafted in the sixth round or later have ever won a game where they’ve completed 66 percent of their passes and thrown for 265 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Tanner McKee did that in his first career start.

6. JALEN HURTS STAT OF THE WEEK: Jalen Hurts this year became the only quarterback in NFL history to have a passer rating of at least 103 during the regular season and win the Super Bowl and not make the Pro Bowl. The only QBs in history who had a higher passer rating and went on to win the Super Bowl: Steve Young, Joe Montana, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Kurt Warner and Patrick Mahomes. All were Pro Bowlers the year they won it.

7. I’m glad the NFL is adopting the postseason overtime rule for the regular season. It’s the only fair way to have overtime that isn’t sudden death. The new rule guarantees that both teams have a chance to get the football, which was really necessary. But there is an exception, and that’s if the team getting the ball first uses the entire overtime or most of it and scores with little or no time on the clock. That could leave the second team with no time left – which isn’t likely – or very little time on the clock – which is quite likely. Which is why it’s stupid not to expand overtime from 10 to 15 minutes. If it’s a matter of “player safety,” we’re talking about a handful of games each year and maybe a few more minutes of football. If you want both teams to have a fair chance to score, you can’t play a 10-minute overtime.

8. Only six Hall of Fame defensive backs have been drafted in the second round, and the Eagles have drafted two of them – Eric Allen in 1988 and Brian Dawkins in 1996. The others are Washington’s Paul Krause and the Cowboys’ Mel Renfro, both drafted in 1964, the Lions’ Lem Barney, drafted in 1967, and the Packers’ LeRoy Butler, drafted in 1990. So the Eagles have drafted more Hall of Fame defensive backs in the second round over the last 50 years than every other team combined.

9. There’s so much anti-Shedeur Sanders sentiment going into the draft, and I’m sure it’s a result of just how over-hyped everything Colorado football has been since Deion took over and a sense that the program is all about show and not really about winning. But Sanders is going to be a really good pro. He’s incredibly tough. He was sacked 94 times the last two years and some of those were on Sanders for holding the ball too long, but Colorado’s offensive line was terrible, and he showed tremendous tenacity popping up after every one of those sacks without missing time. He’s the most accurate quarterback in the draft and can really squeeze the ball in tight windows. He completed 74 percent of his passes last year – best in the BCS – while also leading the BCS with 8.7 yards per attempt. That’s an impressive combination. He throws accurately in the pocket or on the move, and he’s got polished fundamentals and elite poise that make him NFL ready. I have a hunch we’ll see him twice a year in a Giants uniform.

10. Saquon Barkley was tied for the 57^th-highest career rushing average in NFL history coming into 2024 at 4.3 yards per carry (minimum 1,000 carries). Just one year later, he’s tied for 15^th with a 4.7 career average. 

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Lakers get big test against Thunder to open final week of regular season

Lakers forward LeBron James high-fives guard Austin Reaves after taking a commanding lead against the Pelicans late in the fourth quarter Friday night at Crypto.com Arena. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

This isn’t quite the Lakers’ final exams, but it’s still one heck of a test.

They begin the final week of their regular season Sunday in Oklahoma City, facing the NBA’s best team, owners of the third-best offense and, by far, the league’s best defense.

And then they do it again Tuesday.

“It’s a great test. They’re obviously a really good team with probably the front-runner for MVP right now," Lakers guard Austin Reaves said. "So, a team that plays hard every possession and guards at a very high level. And then on the other end, they play with space. Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander] does what he does, but it’s a good test for us to match up with the No. 1 team in the West and see where we’re at right now and continue to try to prove that we’re a good team too.”

A scheduling quirk has the Lakers playing a pair of games on the road against the Thunder to kick off the final seven days of the regular season. It comes at a time when the Lakers are in a good position — third in the conference — but with little cushion.

Denver, Golden State, Memphis, Minnesota and the Clippers are within two games, and while the Lakers have tiebreak advantages over most, a tumble into the play-in round isn’t out of the question.

Read more:Luka Doncic rediscovers his scoring touch, leading Lakers to win over Pelicans

A winning week, 3-2, would guarantee the Lakers at least fifth place, while four wins would lock up home-court advantage for at least the first round. But the first win, one in Oklahoma City, is going to be toughest.

“'I’m glad that their team and their program, people are realizing how good that organization is and what they've built,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said Friday. “And I watch them a lot. They're really hard to score on. They have a number of high-level defenders.”

The Thunder’s defense is one of the few in the NBA with the personnel to match up with the Lakers’ stars, who are showing signs of finding rhythm with one another.

Luka Doncic bounced back from a rough game in a loss to the Warriors and a miserable first quarter Friday to get back in rhythm in a win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

LeBron James has now played eight games since missing two weeks because of a groin injury and his energy, efficiency and three-point stroke have been moving in the right direction.

Reaves is one of the hottest shooters in the league, having made 15 threes in his last two games, with James hyping him up in the locker room postgame Friday.

“LeBron throws me good passes, Luka throws me good passes and I just shoot it with confidence,” Reaves said. “That’s really it.”

The Lakers are catching the Thunder after a loss to the Rockets. It’s also the Thunder’s first chance to see Doncic on the Lakers after he and his previous team (Dallas, Wednesday’s opponent) knocked them out of last year’s playoffs.

“It was a very physical series. We were all very tired after that series, but it was fun. Definitely fun,” Doncic said. “OKC's a tough matchup. But those matchups are special. And like I said before, it's gonna be a big challenge for us. But also it's the games that, it's fun to play.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Steph driven by desire over wisdom amid Warriors' final playoff push

Steph driven by desire over wisdom amid Warriors' final playoff push originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – It would have been wise of Stephen Curry to spend Friday on the bench in designer sweats, giving his sore pelvis a couple days to heal, watching the Warriors try to shed three years of despair.

But with nine days remaining in the 2024-25 NBA season and the Warriors caught in the maelstrom of the Western Conference playoff chase, Curry is driven more by desire than wisdom. He is following what his heart wants, not what his body needs.

Spectating was out of the question. He ignored the “questionable” tag on the injury report because that designation might have influence in November but not in April. This is when Savage Steph is on the prowl.

Curry announced his plans to Golden State coach Steve Kerr and team health and performance honcho Dr. Rick Celebrini, strapped a pad to his backside, dashed onto the court, scored 36 points in 32 minutes and led a 118-104 throttling of the Nuggets that snapped a nine-game losing streak to Denver.

Some risks are worth a little agony. Jimmy Butler III, nursing a strained left forearm, also was listed as questionable. He also played. The third and relatively healthiest member of the team’s veteran core, Draymond Green, also answered the call.

Never was there a doubt, though, that Curry not only would put himself through an evening of discomfort but also invite even more if that’s what it would take to get the W.

“The conversation is just context of where we are in the season,” Curry said. “But if any of us felt physically like we weren’t ready to go or could put ourselves in jeopardy of taking a couple steps back physically, then you have a different decision.
“But we all felt good. We got in at a decent hour. Rick and Steve are pretty proactive on some of those conversations. When we all talked about it this morning, it was a full green light.”

Curry’s redoubtable will was on display in the final five minutes of the second quarter. Playing their third game in four nights and second in two, the fatigued Warriors sagged through the first quarter and fell behind by 10 points. When Curry reentered in the second quarter, he flooded the Nuggets with a torrent of buckets, scoring 12 points in less than four minutes.

That drove the first stake into the heart of Golden State’s longest losing streak against any team in the NBA.

Curry had teammates to inspire. A Chase Center sellout crowd to thrill. And there he was – in moments of temporary insanity – landing on the sorest part of his body after intentionally drawing charge calls from bigger opponents.

The two-time MVP and four-time NBA champ is all-in on his team’s drive for another triumphant season. His mission is visible on his face. The faraway stares. The brief curling of his upper lip. The glee with which he is dissecting defenses and terrorizing individual defenders.

“There is a completely different focus, and you see the focus everywhere,” Green said of his longtime teammate. “It’s not just once he steps on the court. It’s in his practices, in his workouts. He’s on the phone he’s talking . . . he’s suggesting substitution patterns. He’s just all the way in.

“He gets into the weeds around this time. We try to keep him out of the weeds all year because it can be a bit exhausting. But he kind of knows when it’s time for him to get in the weeds, and he is right now.”

Curry’s 36-point game on Friday followed a 37-point outburst Thursday against the Lakers in Los Angeles, which followed a 52-point performance Tuesday in Memphis. Three games, four days, 125 points, three Golden State victories.

“In three different cities, at (age) 37,” Kerr said, marveling. “He looked so fast out there tonight. Maybe it’s his most underrated part of his game is his conditioning. Just incredible what he does out there, especially considering how much attention he draws defensively, how much pressure people put on him. He handles it night after night and flourishes, incredible athlete.”

The Warriors were 10th in the Western Conference standings on Feb. 1. Butler made his debut on Feb. 8 and they’d moved to seventh by March 1. The win over the Grizzlies on Tuesday lifted them to fifth place. They went to bed Friday night one-half game behind fourth-place Denver and one full game behind the third-place Los Angeles Lakers.

Golden State is 20-2 when Curry, Green and Butler are in the lineup. Their last two losses, at Atlanta and at Miami, came in games Curry was sidelined due to the initial pelvic injury.

A chance to beat a longtime tormentor? An opportunity to push Golden State’s win streak to five? A night to give his team what only he can provide?

Tender tailbone and all, Curry was going to play. Never should have been a doubt.

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Bengals, Bears could (in theory) come together and pay for a stadium in Chicago

New York (OK, New Jersey) has two teams. Los Angeles has two. If London ever has one, it likely will have two.

What about Chicago?

The market currently supports two teams in the sport that used to be America's pastime. And with the Bears getting nowhere when it comes to finagling taxpayer funding for a new stadium, the solution could come from having a second team play there.

Instantly, the inventory of games would double, from 10 to 20. It would become much easier for the Bears (and possibly the other team, unless it's just a tenant) to pay for the building with minimal public assistance.

Enter the Bengals. They're less than three months away from the final countdown to the expiration of their lease at Paycor Stadium. During the league meetings this week, executive V.P. Katie Blackburn said the quiet thing out loud — after 2025, the Bengals can go wherever they want to go.

It's easy to come up with a list of cities that currently have no NFL teams. But the best outcome for the Bengals, and the Bears, could be to partner up in a new Chicagoland stadium. Lakefront or Arlington Heights. Wherever. The revenue from 20 NFL games each year, along with everything else that could be hosted in a fixed-roof building, should be able to pay for the building.

The chances of ths actually happening are low. In theory, it's possible. And with the political winds blowing more and more strongly against subsidies for football teams worth upwards of $10 billion or beyond, it might take brash creativity to solve the current stadium situations for the Bears.

And the Bengals.

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Pistons clinch playoff spot one season after finishing with 14 wins, NBA's worst record

Arthur Blank: Falcons' draft emphasis will be on defense

There are a few weeks to go before the 2025 NFL Draft will be in full swing, but the Falcons are giving a hint about what direction they are going to take in Green Bay later this month.

That hint came from owner Arthur Blank when he spoke to reporters at the league meetings earlier this week. The Falcons have opened up their last four drafts by selecting an offensive player in the first round, but the team allowed nearly 25 points per game during the 2024 season and Blank said that the focus in the draft will be in shoring up the other side of the ball.

"The emphasis during the draft will be certainly on the defensive side of the ball, and it's pretty obvious to everybody, I would say," Blank said, via Marc Raimondi of ESPN.com.

Blank may not take a Jerry Jones-esque role in his team's personnel department, but he signs the checks and the guy who does that generally gets what he's looking for when big decisions get made.

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