Raiders-to-Las Vegas plan gains steam

NEW YORK - Almost a year to the day after the Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers parted ways as stadium allies, the long-range future of the ?two rivals seems intertwined again.

While Los Angeles remains a key component of their connection, the NFL could be looking at ways to eliminate the Los Angeles part of the equation while getting the Raiders situated in Las Vegas and giving the Chargers more time to sort out things in San Diego.

To that end, the NFL has summoned their owner-comprised Stadium and Finance Committees to the home office in New York to help map out a plan that achieves both objectives.

The ultimate goal, according to sources, is clearing a path for the Raiders to Las Vegas and, in the process, buying Chargers owner Dean Spanos more time in San Diego.

One of the keys is manipulating the one-year option Spanos holds on joining the Rams in Los Angeles that gets passed onto the Raiders on Sunday.

The two teams were approved for those options a year ago in Houston when NFL owners chose the Rams’ relocation bid from St. Louis to Los Angeles and their $2.6 billion stadium plan in Inglewood over the joint stadium plan by the Chargers and Raiders in Carson.

The Chargers were given first dibs on the option, and decided to hold onto it through 2016 while pursuing a downtown San Diego stadium initiative. That bid was ultimately rejected by San Diego voters, forcing the Chargers to again take a serious look at Los Angeles.

According to multiple sources close to the situation, Spanos is prepared to pull the trigger on L.A. and has already laid groundwork for a potential relocation.

Or, as a high-ranking NFL official who spoke on the condition of anonymity put it, Spanos has been “telling everybody that he’s (going to L.A.).”

Additionally, the Chargers will not be in New York this week and are not planning to ask for an extension on the LA option, which further fuels the belief Spanos is prepared to turn the page on San Diego and head north.

That decision could come any time, according to multiple sources.

But while the NFL green-lighted a Chargers move to LA last January, there is strong indication the league prefers they stay put. If not permanently, at least long enough to get final clarity on a stadium partnership in San Diego.

That’s where the Raiders come in, and potentially the NFL’s stadium and finance committees.

If the Raiders are ultimately approved for Las Vegas - a prospect gaining more and more momentum and expected to get a strong push from the NFL this week in New York - they’ll no longer need their option to relocate to L.A.

Theoretically, that option could revert to the Chargers, who can use the additional time to pursue a new stadium proposal knowing they won’t lose their landing spot in Los Angeles.

Any option extension would have to be granted by the Raiders, who would require some form of compensation.

One could presume that compensation could come in the form of assurances that their Las Vegas objective is granted.

While an extended option addresses the element of time for the Chargers, there is still the concern of getting a suitable stadium deal in place to bolster Spanos’ confidence in winning an eventual San Diego vote.

And that could be tied into lowering whatever funding gap exists between the Chargers’ contribution to the stadium and the public portion being offered by San Diego.

With California so hesitant to kick in money on professional sports stadiums - and the decision in San Diego ultimately resting in the hands of voters - the NFL could decide to sweeten the pot by adding more money to the cause. The league has pledged $300 million through its standard $200 million G-4 loan and another $100 million approved by owners last January as incentive for the Chargers to work things out in San Diego.

The topic of adding more league money is expected to be broached in New York.

If so, the league could lower the public contribution enough to significantly improve the chances of a favorable vote.

Whether the comfort level created by more time, more money and no fear of losing Los Angeles as a landing spot is enough for Spanos to apply the brakes on leaving San Diego remains to be seen.

But first things first, and that begins with whatever comes out of this week’s meetings in New York.

As for the Raiders, with their season over after losing their wild-card playoff game Saturday to the Houston Texans, they are free to file for relocation to Las Vegas.

Awaiting them is a stadium agreement in which Nevada will kick in $750 million, Sands Corp. head Sheldon Adelson will put in $650 million and the Raiders will contribute $500 million.

According to multiple sources, approval for a Raiders move to Nevada is picking up steam.

While one NFL executive cautioned it wasn’t a done deal, he also added he doesn’t see anything stopping it unless it hits an unexpected snafu.

For now, the Raiders intend to sit tight and see what unfolds in New York before officially filing for relocation.

Which sets the stage for a fascinating meeting this week in which the NFL is poised to draw up a map that could solidify the long-range futures of two franchises while making sure the Rams have Los Angeles all to themselves.