CaptainHook Posted December 19, 2004 Share Posted December 19, 2004 Sorry Bill, this deserves it's own thread. . . Mayor Bart Peterson and Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay plan to announce a long-sought deal to build a new football stadium and secure the franchise's long-term location in the city. The plan calls for a 30-year lease and a retractable-roof stadium, according to an official close to the negotiations who did not want to be identified. According to Colts spokeswoman Myra Borshoff, Irsay and Peterson will make the announcement on the RCA Dome field before tonight's nationally televised game against the Baltimore Ravens. No details were available on how the estimated $450 million stadium will be funded but tax revenues are expected to play a part in the plan. The official said details are expected to be announced during a news conference Monday. Irsay and Peterson have negotiated for more than two years, looking for ways to keep the team in one of the NFL's smaller markets while boosting its bottom line. Without a new deal, the city could be forced to make a series of annual payments to the team topping $12 million beginning in 2006, and the team could leave for another market after the 2013 season -- if not before. The end of the negotiating between the city and the Colts is just the first step. The General Assembly and the City-County Council will likely have to sign off on tax elements of the plan, while Peterson has also promised to sell the idea to a general public that polls have shown strongly disagree with spending tax dollars on professional sports teams. link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savage Beatings Posted December 19, 2004 Share Posted December 19, 2004 I'm impressed with the Colts organization. They seem genuinely committed to keeping their team competitive and their fans happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knicker Posted December 19, 2004 Share Posted December 19, 2004 thanks, for the link, Capn... GREAT news to hear for us local fans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theeohiostate Posted December 19, 2004 Share Posted December 19, 2004 Now it looks like Edge will get PAID !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 19, 2004 Share Posted December 19, 2004 Sorry Bill, this deserves it's own thread. . . 620758[/snapback] No problem. I'm just happy as hell that they finally got it done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainHook Posted December 19, 2004 Author Share Posted December 19, 2004 (edited) Local news also reporting that Edgerrin James WILL be franchised for next season. But I think we all knew that anyway. . . Edited December 19, 2004 by CaptainHook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainHook Posted December 20, 2004 Author Share Posted December 20, 2004 They showed the plans for the stadium on the JumboTron before the game. Very, very cool. It can be converted to host the Final Four and Super Bowls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 I'm impressed with the Colts organization. They seem genuinely committed to keeping their team competitive and their fans happy. 620773[/snapback] It's starting to look like this may actually be the case. If so, good for junior not acting like his pig of a father. Old man Irsay ran our great team into the groud and kept it there until the Indy guarenteed sellout ran out. Since getting the team, little Irsay actually seems to be willing to spend the money instead of just sitting on his ass and taking his 1/32 of the TV money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'canes2004 Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 Will it be grass or some kind of synthetic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knicker Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 more will likely be known today as Mayor Peterson and Irsay will hold a press conference to discuss the financial ramifications of the new deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainHook Posted December 20, 2004 Author Share Posted December 20, 2004 check out the video Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 Local news also reporting that Edgerrin James WILL be franchised for next season. 621127[/snapback] According to Thiesman, Polian told him that they were looking to sign Edge to a long-term deal. Not sure I believe that, but that's what Joe claims. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jrick35 Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 They showed the plans for the stadium on the JumboTron before the game. Very, very cool. It can be converted to host the Final Four and Super Bowls. 621686[/snapback] Yeah I was totally impressed with the design of the stadium. I can't wait to see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 check out the video 621888[/snapback] Complete with cheesy Mellencamp music. "Check it out!" Very impressive. They should put up a couple statues of great Colts players outside the stadium. Put up a statue of Manning throwing a ball and a statue of Marvin catching a ball about 80 yds away. And, of course, it would be incomplete without a statue of Unitas on the other side of the stadium. Indy also really does need a larger convention center. The city hosts a lot of regional conferences, but doesn't have the room for many national conferences. Hopefully this will also prompt the building of more restaurants, bars, and hotels on the south side of downtown. That's much more appealing than those abandoned factory buildings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knicker Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 The Unitas statue would be nice but awkward. He was never a fan of the Colts ever being in Indy and has gone on record bashing the Irsays Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 And, of course, it would be incomplete without a statue of Unitas on the other side of the stadium. 622005[/snapback] Why, he never played in Indy? Not only did JU not like the Indy Colts, I believe he made them take his name out of their record books and such. There is already a statue of JU outside of an NFL stadium. It's in Baltimore where it belongs. I thought you'd know better than to suggest something so stupid. Do you want to see an Earl Cambell statue in Tennessee, a Jim Brown statue in Baltimore or a Merlin Olsen statue in St. Louis? Hopefully you will realize that is just a bad idea. The Colts have a great team now, but the fact that Eric Dickerson stands alone as their only stud player since moving to Indy (that has since retired) is no one's fault but Old Man Irsay's. Indy has been in the league 20 years. Hopefully they will not try to build on a history that is not theirs. Let Indy actually build a legacy before celebrating one built by an other city. Hopefully that is how the Indy fans would want it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainHook Posted December 20, 2004 Author Share Posted December 20, 2004 (edited) Why, he never played in Indy? Not only did JU not like the Indy Colts, I believe he made them take his name out of their record books and such. There is already a statue of JU outside of an NFL stadium. It's in Baltimore where it belongs. I thought you'd know better than to suggest something so stupid. 622102[/snapback] I think Bill was just trying to irritate Baltimore fans. There is no way the Colts would do that. Unitas did request that his name be taken out of the Colts record book. However, they did not. His records are all still there. It would be the ultimate insult to put up a statue of Unitas here in Indy. It will not happen. Baltimore fans, remember that Jim Irsay is not his father. I understand the bitterness toward the Irsay family, but Jim has been nothing but class since taking over after Robert died. Edited December 20, 2004 by CaptainHook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 (edited) Why, he never played in Indy? Not only did JU not like the Indy Colts, I believe he made them take his name out of their record books and such. There is already a statue of JU outside of an NFL stadium. It's in Baltimore where it belongs. I thought you'd know better than to suggest something so stupid. 622102[/snapback] My, my, aren't we a bit angry about losing last night? Do you want to see an Earl Cambell statue in Tennessee, a Jim Brown statue in Baltimore or a Merlin Olsen statue in St. Louis? Hopefully you will realize that is just a bad idea. The Colts have a great team now, but the fact that Eric Dickerson stands alone as their only stud player since moving to Indy (that has since retired) is no one's fault but Old Man Irsay's. Indy has been in the league 20 years. Hopefully they will not try to build on a history that is not theirs. Let Indy actually build a legacy before celebrating one built by an other city. Hopefully that is how the Indy fans would want it. 622102[/snapback] So, the Raiders should remove the 1983 Super Bowl trophy from their case because they won it as the LA Raiders? Should we remove Marcus Allen, Tim Brown, and Bo Jackson from the Oakland Raiders history books because they were drafted as LA Raiders? Was Ozzie Newsome wrong to take the GM job with the Ravens? Edited December 20, 2004 by Bill Swerski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 Swerski, you should hope that one day you have as much common sense in your entire body as Captain Hook has in his big toe. You want to keep spouting off like this and put yourself in a group with Ugly Tuna and the like, go ahead. As far as being upset the Ravens lost, sure, but that's not the point of my post. All the guys you mentioned actually played football for Los Angeles unlike Unitas who I doubt ever set foot in Indy, much less played there. I said earlier in this post that young Irsay seems to not be a tard like his father. Again, good for him being his own man. Old man Irsay took the best deal for the short term and only recently have the Colts been a competitive product on the field (they're still trying to catch up financially). It actually sounds like Jim Irsay is going to try and make Indy work. Realize how lucky you are that he is not his father as he'd have been pimping the team around the second he thought he could get away with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 (edited) Swerski, you should hope that one day you have as much common sense in your entire body as Captain Hook has in his big toe. You want to keep spouting off like this and put yourself in a group with Ugly Tuna and the like, go ahead. 622340[/snapback] You never answered my question: Do the Oakland Raiders have to take their Lombardi trophy that they won in 1983 as the LA franchise out of the display case? It's a legitimate question. Answering it will make you look like more of an intelligent man than the insulting garbage that you've just spewed. So, you blow up about me suggesting that the Colts should erect a Unitas statue outside of their new stadium. Of course, Unitas is still in the Colts record books and it's the same franchise (same ownership, same name, same uniforms), so why not? I don't see the Red Sox erasing Clemens and Carlton Fisk from their franchise history because they left the team on bad terms. I don't see the Yankees omitting Yogi Berra and Dave Winfield from their record books either. The Colts (NOT the city of Baltimore) signed Unitas' paychecks and, therefore, are entitled to capitalize off of his success. I doubt that they'll erect a statue of him here (mostly because they want to build their own identity in Indy), but they'd have every right to do it if they chose to. I find it ironic that you constantly whine about the Irsays on this board, while your team was also stolen from another city. So, it's OK to cheer for Art Modell's team, but Bob Irsay is scum? Hypocrite. Edited December 20, 2004 by Bill Swerski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Posted December 21, 2004 Share Posted December 21, 2004 You never answered my question: Do the Oakland Raiders have to take their Lombardi trophy that they won in 1983 as the LA franchise out of the display case? It's a legitimate question. Answering it will make you look like more of an intelligent man than the insulting garbage that you've just spewed. 622416[/snapback] Where would they put it in LA? That was a team thing and as much as it sucks, the team is going to take that with them. LA knows they won that championship and I doubt Oakland fans really consider that thing theirs. I'm sure Indy Colts fans realize that not only have they not won anything since they got a team, they've only won 4 playoff games total. I would love to see the Colts 3 Championships back here in Baltimore, but I know that won't happen. So, you blow up about me suggesting that the Colts should erect a Unitas statue outside of their new stadium. Of course, Unitas is still in the Colts record books and it's the same franchise (same ownership, same name, same uniforms), so why not? I don't see the Red Sox erasing Clemens and Carlton Fisk from their franchise history because they left the team on bad terms. I don't see the Yankees omitting Yogi Berra and Dave Winfield from their record books either. The Colts (NOT the city of Baltimore) signed Unitas' paychecks and, therefore, are entitled to capitalize off of his success. I doubt that they'll erect a statue of him here (mostly because they want to build their own identity in Indy), but they'd have every right to do it if they chose to.622416[/snapback] Again momo, all they players you named actually played in the cities you've mentioned. How many games did Unitas play for Indy? Personally, I can't get enough of the classic NFL Films where they show him walking out into the big concrete tent an setting record after record. I can't recall how many times I've heard Indy fans recall the days they went and saw Unitas play or count how many times they ran into him at lunch. :retardo: When I look at the Colts, especially just the logo, I remember going to Memorial Stadium as a very young kid, meeting Bert Jones and getting my autograph book singed by the few bright spots we did have. Seeing Tony Dungy (great coach) wearing a shirt that says "Indianapolis Colts - Founded 1953" is just wrong. I'm glad that the Ravens and their ownership have the Baltimore Colts and their Ring of Honor in our new stadium. Baltimore bleeds purple and black now, but it's good to see the Great history of the Colts where it belongs. I find it ironic that you constantly whine about the Irsays on this board, while your team was also stolen from another city. So, it's OK to cheer for Art Modell's team, but Bob Irsay is scum? Hypocrite. 622416[/snapback] Again, momo, I've given credit to Jim Irsay for actually putting together a good product and being commited to a city that has helped put his franchise in the bottom 5 teams in terms of revenue and worth. Old Fat Irsay was hated in Baltimore well before he moved the team. He took a top franchise and turned it into a team the level of the Arizona Cardinals for about 20 years with Baltimore and Indy each seeing years of crap. You think Old Man Irsay was a good owner? You are correct, I doubt the fans of Indy would want a statue of Unitas as it's not their guy. Too bad they didn't have that pride when they got the Colts and kept their colors/name. Baltimore did not want to take an other cities team. Thank the expansion process (F'n Jacksonville?) for that. Well before the NFL came up with the idea the fans in Baltimore had already voiced rejection for keeping the Browns name and colors. Of course, Colt blue and Raven purple are much better than Brown Brown, so that was not a hard choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 21, 2004 Share Posted December 21, 2004 (edited) Where would they put it in LA? That was a team thing and as much as it sucks, the team is going to take that with them. LA knows they won that championship and I doubt Oakland fans really consider that thing theirs. 623593[/snapback] You're absolutely wrong. Check out the Raiders website and you'll clearly see that they claim SB XVIII. Nice try. BTW, you might also want to check out the Rams website. They list all of the HOFers that DIDN'T play in St. Louis (Merlin Olsen, Deacon Jones, Norm Van Brocklin, Night Train Lane, Eric Dickerson, etc.). They also claim the ALL of the championships won before the move to St. Louis. Funny how two other NFL organizations didn't throw away their history because of their move, isn't it? I'm sure Indy Colts fans realize that not only have they not won anything since they got a team, they've only won 4 playoff games total. And I'm sure that Baltimore Ravens fans realize that a small market like Indy does a much better job of supporting the Colts than they ever did. Again momo, all they players you named actually played in the cities you've mentioned. So, Merlin Olsen, Deacon Jones, Night Train Lane, and Eric Dickerson no longer affiliate themselves with the Rams? Seeing Tony Dungy (great coach) wearing a shirt that says "Indianapolis Colts - Founded 1953" is just wrong. It's the same organization. They're just in a different city. When a company moves an office or a plant to another state, do they change the name of the company as well? You think Old Man Irsay was a good owner? He's no less ethical than Art Modell. You are correct, I doubt the fans of Indy would want a statue of Unitas as it's not their guy. Too bad they didn't have that pride when they got the Colts and kept their colors/name. The Colts organization has as much a right to the Unitas legacy and the legacy of the Baltimore Colts as the city of Baltimore does. One could argue that they actually have MORE of a right to the legacy of the players because, unlike the city, they actually PAID the players. Apparently your mother never taught you the concept of "sharing." Baltimore did not want to take an other cities team. LOL!!! That's got to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Yeah, tell that to a Browns fan. Edited December 21, 2004 by Bill Swerski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Posted December 21, 2004 Share Posted December 21, 2004 Man, you either just turned into a whack job or I just never saw it. I said Oakland fans, not the team. Again, any fan of a team that claims victory for a championship won while in an other city is an idiot. The team is going to do it as it was the same team, but the fans should know better as I doubt they where fans before the move. The St. Louis Rams may list those players as their own, but I really doubt they would erect a statue of those players (this is what you said the Colts should do). You cannot justify putting a Unitas statue in Indy no matter what you say. If Los Angeles had an NFL team, I'd really like to see who the players you listed support. Think Jim Brown supports the Ravens? Think Earl Campbell supports the Titans? Those cities have new teams and their NFL legacy did not move with them. As for supporting the team, Irsay ran the team into the ground and got upset when fans stopped showing up. Indy gave him a guarenteed sellout. Only when that ran out (10 years) was a minimal effort made to upgrade the team. Anyone who thinks Baltimore never supported football (NFL, USFL, CFL) is just not that bright. Unlike Indy, Baltimore was not going to let Irsay ruin our team and pay him to do it. Modell moved his team, but always put money into the team. That didn't happen in Indy until Jim Irsay starting running the show. Indy fans has zero rights to claim anything done by the Colts before 1984. If they want to pretend and piggy back on what was done before they became an NFL city, then fine. I might pretend also if I was about to build my 2nd stadium and only had 4 playoff wins to show for it. Indy is an NFL city now, but anyone who pretends that they have a history before 1984 is just an idiot with nothing after 1984 to be proud of. So Baltimore tries for years to get an team. Stadium financing was in place for years, the NFL was given countless handjobs, we got behind the USFL and CFL to show the NFL what we had and where told by Tagliabu to take our money and build a museum. We took a team because it was the only way. Indy took a team because it was the only way. I don't appologize for what we did anymore than an Indy fan should applogize to me. It was the fault of Irsay and the Maryland goverment, not the fans of Baltimore or Indy. Keep running your mouth. I'll sit back, enjoy the 40 years of NFL football history my city has, think about our 4 titles and tell my kids about the Unitas era, Bert Jones, The Greatest Game Ever Played, Super Bowl 5 and our total destruction of the Giants in the Superbowl while standing in Unitas Plaza in our new state of the art stadium. Colts fans can enjoy telling their kids of a couple playoff victories, how one day Peyton may win the big game and how they will soon have an other stadium because they one they built a short 20 years ago is already considered obsolete while throwing in stories of what the great team did in an other city. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted December 21, 2004 Share Posted December 21, 2004 (edited) I said Oakland fans, not the team. Again, any fan of a team that claims victory for a championship won while in an other city is an idiot. 623913[/snapback] OK, so the Oakland fans rejected that Superbowl title after they moved back to Oakland? You're clueless. The St. Louis Rams may list those players as their own, but I really doubt they would erect a statue of those players (this is what you said the Colts should do). You cannot justify putting a Unitas statue in Indy no matter what you say. Maybe not, but they have THE RIGHT to do so if they choose. They PAID Unitas to be a part of their organization in Baltimore and he's still in the Colts record books. Hell, they could erect a statue of Vince Lombardi if they WANTED to. If Los Angeles had an NFL team, I'd really like to see who the players you listed support. Two words: Ozzie Newsome As for supporting the team, Irsay ran the team into the ground and got upset when fans stopped showing up. Indy gave him a guarenteed sellout. Only when that ran out (10 years) was a minimal effort made to upgrade the team. Anyone who thinks Baltimore never supported football (NFL, USFL, CFL) is just not that bright. The Colts DID NOT have tremendous fan support in Baltimore, even before Bob Irsay ran the team... 1951(1/18) Watner withdrew franchise and was paid $50,000 for players by NFL. Sounds a lot like the Montreal Expos, doesn't it? 1952(12/3) Commissioner Bert Bell, addressing the Advertising Club, issued a challenge to Colts fans to sell 15,000 season tickets in six weeks to re-enter NFL. (12/8) And look what happened when they moved to Indy... 1984(3/28) Colts in Indianapolis. (4/18) Season tickets offered for sale and overwhelming response yielded 143,000 requests in two weeks. On top of that, they convinced the (soon-to-be) greatest NFL QB/WR tandem to re-sign long-term deals and have reached an agreement with the city for a new $450,000,000 stadium. Indy fans has zero rights to claim anything done by the Colts before 1984. Jim Irsay, Al Davis, Georgia Frontiere, and I disagree with you. All of the Colts players from the Baltimore days are in the COLTS record book and that's the way it should be. The city of Baltimore can claim them as well, but they in no way have "exclusive" rights to the history of a franchise that is now located elsewhere. If LA ends up getting an expansion team, do you honestly think that Al Davis will "erase" his LA history (including the SB XVIII title)? Neither do I. I'll sit back, enjoy the 40 years of NFL football history my city has BTW, how many Cleveland Browns were on that 2000 Ravens team? Keep running your mouth. The more you run YOUR mouth, the more painfully obvious it becomes that you're just a sad little crybaby who can't deal with the fact that the Colts moved their team away from Baltimore and have been moderately successful since. Nor can you deal with the fact that this team beat your Ravens before a national audience on Sunday night. The Colts are located in INDIANAPOLIS now. Deal with it. :bawling: Edited December 21, 2004 by Bill Swerski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Posted December 21, 2004 Share Posted December 21, 2004 LOL, comparing 50's NFL expansion with 80's ecconomics. You're right, fan support for the poorly run 50 team must have been horrible, that's why a team was again given in 54. How many NFL cities had problems or just up an disappeared during that time? I suppose you think Dallas is a bad city because they lost the Texans, Chicago because they lost the Cardinals? The Colts have only been moderately successful the last few years. Save one year with Harbaugh and the Manning/Harrison era, the team was laughable. Robert Irsay raped Indy for that team. A 10 year guarenteed sellout in a stadium labeled obsolete by the time that guarentee ran out. I'll tell you what Billy, go ahead and build a statue of Unitas right outside of the RCA dome. When the fans can't relate to it and the rest of the league looks at you like a 5 year old girlie playing dress up, maybe you can put it on ebay. I can see it now. "This is John Unitas. A God during his time, he did more for the advancement of the game than any other QB before him. As Unitas has won a Championship and is a HOF'er other than Dickerson, he obviously did none of this here." As for Ozzie Newsome, the man was a God on the field and is an even bigger God as a GM. We only take credit for him being a stud GM. I'm sure his heart is as much in Cleveland as it is in Baltimore. We may one day put his statue outside of our stadium, but I'm willing to bet it will be in honor of his service as our GM. Oh, again, you named a player who actually has done NFL work in his new city. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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