Every now and then a sports story pops into the public view from what literally seems to be out of thin air. Take for example Dallas mayor Eric Johnson’s Tweets last week, proclaiming that Dallas needs a 2nd NFL team in the area. Didn’t see that one coming did ya?
“We [the city of Dallas] are about to pass the Chicago metro and become the #3 metro in the US, which would make us the largest US metro WITHOUT 2 teams. Football is king here. Dallas needs an expansion team and we would be able to sustain 2,” Johnson tweeted.
Mayor Johnson isn’t up for reelection until 2023, but he does seem to be well aware that it’s never too early to start campaigning – or at least to get his name out in the media – and what better way to do so in Texas than start talking football. Tristan Hallman, chief of policy and communications for the mayor, said no discussions have occurred yet, but “Mayor Johnson believes Dallas should be part of any conversation about potential NFL relocations or expansions.”
His vision is to land an AFC team to play in Dallas proper, driven by his dream of an “All-Metroplex” Super Bowl. Ahhhh dreams. And he has his relocation targets already chosen as witnessed by his Tweet below.
But let’s be clear about one thing, the Chargers (owned by the Spanos family) aren’t going anywhere, at least not for awhile. The Chargers are locked into SoFi Stadium until 2039 at a minimum, and potentially until 2059. Do the Spanos wish they we’re playing somewhere else and not sharing their home with the world champion Rams? Most assuredly. No one likes playing second fiddle, but they’re in the midst of paying off a $200 million loan that won’t allow them to move. In addition, moving to Dallas would make their 2nd fiddle status in L.A. look like small potatoes, and they are well aware of that.
So what about the Jaguars? The rumor of the London Jaguars seems to have died down a bit, and they now are showing tangible signs of staying put as well. At the end of 2021 team president Mark Lamping actually said the team is on a path to tackling a full stadium renovation of TIAA Bank Field. Not likely something a team would indulge if they had plans on making an exit.
As far as an expansion team popping up in Dallas, there are cities that have been waiting in line for decades for that honor and I don’t see them being leap-frogged by Big D. Cities like St. Louis and Oakland want the NFL back, and international expansion to places like London, Toronto and Mexico City are on the agenda. Oh, and let us not forget the 800 pound gorilla in the room, Jerry Jones.
To say that we think the mayor is a tad out of touch with realty when it comes to Jerry might be a bit of an understatement. The chance that Jerry, who in 2015 put the kibosh on the league potentially putting a team in San Antonio before discussions could even get started, would rubber stamp another team in HIS domain… HIS backyard, is beyond far fetched. If it cost Jerry one sold ticket, or one less jersey purchased, or God forbid….one lost sponsor, well let’s just say we’re glad the mayor is at least getting his name out there well before the election.
