ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, February 7, 1996 TAG: 9602070052
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From Associated Press reports
NFL owners again face their most perplexing question this week - how to fit 30 teams into 32 cities.
The only feasible answer may be a new round of expansion, a solution cited this week by several team and league sources.
But the major business when the owners meet in Chicago on Thursday and Friday is likely to be approval of Cleveland's move to Baltimore - with the condition the Browns' name and colors remain in Cleveland.
The meeting comes a week after the Seattle Seahawks became the fifth team in the past year to move or announce its intention to move. In the Seahawks' case, it's to the market opened up in Southern California by the moves last year of the Raiders back to Oakland and the Rams to St.Louis.
That turbulence has raised eyebrows - not only among the fans, but among the owners.
``I really don't know what's going on in this league,'' Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson said Tuesday. ``I'm really sad to see what's happened to it. We don't have any rules and regulations anymore.''
But Wilson appears to be only one of four potential votes against the move by the Browns. Eight are needed to block it.
Commissioner Paul Tagliabue would not disclose his recommendation Tuesday, saying he would make a final decision after a meeting tonight in Chicago with the league's stadium and finance committees.
But sources say Tagliabue and Cleveland Mayor Michael White appear ready to accede to Art Modell's move of his team to Baltimore if Cleveland is guaranteed another team when Cleveland Stadium is renovated or a new stadium is built and that the team would be known as ``the Browns.''
That still leaves the NFL with 32 cities and 30 franchises - Tagliabue has said he is committed to teams in Cleveland and Baltimore, as well as Los Angeles. If Seattle moves, that would fill a hole in Southern California, but open one in the Pacific Northwest.
Tagliabue, who was in Washington on Tuesday again seeking antitrust protection that would allow the NFL to block team moves, has said he doesn't expect expansion until after the turn of the century.
But some sources suggest he may moderate that position to fill the 32 markets in which he wants teams and stop what could be a chain reaction.
Tampa Bay could move if it doesn't get a new stadium, perhaps into the Cleveland void, maybe to Orlando, Fla., or even to Hartford, Conn. And the Cardinals, who moved from St.Louis to Tempe, Ariz. eight years ago, could be on the march again if Bill Bidwill doesn't get a domed stadium in the desert.
In other NFL news:
COWBOYS: Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman underwent arthroscopic surgery to his right elbow in Birmingham, Ala.
Dr. James Andrews removed loose bodies, bone spurs and scar tissue from the elbow. Aikman will begin a rehabilitation program soon. It was unclear whether he would be participating in today's Cowboys victory parade in Dallas.
No timetable was set for Aikman's return to throwing. However, he said before the surgery he hopes to be ready by training camp in July.
In another Cowboys development, the team waived wide receiver Cory Fleming, who had six catches for 83 yards during the regular season but did not catch a pass in the three playoff games. The Cowboys also lost linebackers coach Jim Eddy, who was hired as defensive coordinator by the Detroit Lions.
OLYMPIAN TASK: Winning the Super Bowl wasn't enough for Emmitt Smith. Now he wants to go to the Olympics.
The Dallas Cowboys star took on a task that will be much more difficult than setting an NFL record for touchdowns: gaining a spot for American football in the Summer Olympics.
``My quest for the Olympics has begun,'' Smith said at a news conference at a sporting goods convention in Atlanta. ``My idea, my dream, my goal is to go out and legitimize this sport and compete at the Olympic Games with my peers in the football arena.''
Anita DeFrantz, a high-ranking U.S. member of the International Olympic Committee, said it was ``highly unlikely'' American football would ever be on the Olympic program.
DISHING IT OUT: After suing 70 bars for showing blacked out NFL games, the league has turned its attention to a satellite-dish company that allegedly told customers how to beat television blackouts.
A $200,000 federal lawsuit against the company marks the latest step in an aggressive campaign by the NFL to stamp out pirated telecasts. The NFL made its strongest anti-piracy effort this season in Buffalo, where team officials have linked subpar attendance with unauthorized showings of Bills games.
Under federal communications and copyright laws, it is illegal for Bills' games to be shown on TV within a 75-mile radius of Rich Stadium when games have not been sold out in time to meet the NFL's blackout deadline.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Philadelphia players Kevin Turner (left) and Andyby CNBHarmon model the new uniforms the Eagles unveiled Tuesday. KEYWORDS: FOOTBALL