FanHouse

Despite what we may have been led to believe, new St. Louis Rams owners Chip Rosenbloom and Lucia Rodriguez have put the team they inherited from Georgia Frontiere up for sale. The duo indicated that they were dedicated to keeping the team in the family, yet we're still months from their first training camp as owners and the sign is already up on the lawn.

A few parties have expressed interest in buying the team, including Eddie DeBartolo, who used to own the division rival 49ers. But there's an interesting "B" plot to all of this -- Los Angeles.

It's natural for relocation to be at least a passing issue whenever new ownership is up in the air, but with the development plans for a new stadium, a history between the team and city (it was Frontiere who moved the Rams from L.A. in the first place), and a team lease with the Edward Jones Dome that lasts only until 2012, any potential suitor is going to have to address his/her long term plans for the team.

This is actually good news for the team and its current owners -- by all accounts it was clear that Rosenbloom and Rodriguez were ill-prepared to run a team; having a proven owner like DeBartolo would be a great add. It's the fans in St. Louis, as is always the case, who are dealt the short straw, having to sit through this entire process wondering whether the expiration date on their team is 2012.

Of course, the league will probably collapse on itself like a dying star before then, anyway.