Football

NFL owners believe the Dan Snyder era with the Washington Commanders is coming to an end.

Per A.J. Perez of Front Office Sports, there is a "growing sense" among some owners that Snyder will sell at least a controlling stake in the Commanders.

"It certainly looks that way," one team owner told Perez.

The speculation comes as NFL owners gathered this week for league meetings in Irving, Texas. Snyder was not in attendance as the Commanders continue to go through the sale process.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, who previously said there was "merit" to removing Snyder from power, told Perez on Wednesday "maybe some other solutions can be found."

Speaking to reporters after the meetings wrapped up, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was asked if he anticipated Snyder would sell full control of the franchise.

"I don't have any expectations on that," Goodell said. "Dan's statement was that he was exploring that. And we will continue to work with him on that."

Mark Maske, Liz Clarke and Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post reported on Wednesday there were "growing expectations" that Snyder will sell the entire franchise, with Bank of America getting ready to release a prospectus to potential buyers.

Dan and Tanya Snyder said in a statement on Nov. 2 they retained Bank of America Securities to consider "potential transactions."

Snyder's ownership of the franchise has been riddled with controversy, especially in recent years.

The United States House Committee on Oversight released a report on Dec. 8 stemming from its investigation into allegations of a toxic workplace.

According to the report, it was determined the Commanders and NFL covered up decades of sexual misconduct within the organization. Snyder was found to have "permitted and participated in this troubling conduct," including inappropriately touching a former employee at a dinner and trying to "aggressively push" her into his limousine.

Snyder purchased the Commanders in May 1999 after previous owner Jack Kent Cooke died. The franchise has had six winning seasons and made the playoffs six times during his tenure as owner.

Things got quite emotional on Wednesday's episode of HBO's Hard Knocks.

Sabrina Greenlee, the mother of Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, opened about surviving a brutal domestic violence attack 20 years ago that left her blind. She previously discussed the incident in an ESPN cover story with Mina Kimes in 2019.

In the episode, Hopkins also talked about how he has found inspiration and strength from his mother. Every time he scores a touchdown, he brings the ball to Greenlee so that she knows he's there and always thinking of her.

"Whenever I score a touchdown or do something, I try to make sure she gets the ball so she can feel me," Hopkins told ESPN in 2019 (h/t Today's Drew Weisholtz).

The heartbreaking but inspirational story sparked respect from those around NFL Twitter:

The latest episode of Hard Knocks also got into Hopkins' performance on the field, as he is captured on video sharing a moment with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick during Monday night's game.

Hopkins missed the first six games of the 2022 campaign while serving a suspension for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy. He has caught 56 passes for 653 yards and three touchdowns in seven games.

In addition to Hopkins, the latest episode also gave an inside look into Kyler Murray's injury. The signal-caller suffered a torn ACL in Monday's game against New England.

It's been a tough season for the Cardinals, which sit third in the NFC West with a 4-9 record as they battle a slew of injuries to top players. In addition to Murray, the team is also without Rondale Moore and Zach Ertz.

Hard Knocks will continue to follow the Cardinals through the end of the season.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay said Wednesday that he is "not ready" to vote out Daniel Syder as owner of the Washington Commanders.

"I'm not ready to vote him out. I need to hear more here. ... I'm not ready to vote him out," Irsay said, per Mark Maske of the Washington Post. "Again, it's something where we want to get more information about everything."

Irsay also commented on the matter in October, saying that removing Snyder as owner of the Commanders should be carefully considered.

He said at the time, via Maske and Nicki Jhabvala:

"I'm not sure how that report's going to come out. But what already has come out is extremely disturbing, and I disagree with the process. And I most likely disagree that we haven't discussed something more severe such as him being removed as owner. As I said, it's not something that I'm saying we should do. I'm saying it's something that has to be given serious consideration."

Twenty-four owners would need to vote in approval of ousting Snyder as owner of the Washington franchise. However, it might not need to come down to a vote.

Snyder and his wife Tanya announced in November that they had hired Bank of America Securities "to consider potential transactions" involving the Commanders.

Bank of America is set to release the prospectus on the Commanders to potential buyers and sources believe Snyder will "most likely" sell his full stake in the franchise, Maske, Jhabvala and Liz Clarke of the Washington Post reported Wednesday.

Snyder purchased the Commanders for $800 million in 1999. The franchise is now valued at $5.6 billion, according to Forbes.

Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos, president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage Mat Ishbia and media entrepreneur Byron Allen have been linked as potential buyers of the NFL's Washington franchise.

The potential sale of the Commanders comes after Snyder and the franchise were under investigation by the United States House Committee on Oversight for allegedly fostering a toxic workplace environment, in addition to sexual harassment allegations.

The year-long investigation headed by Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney found that the NFL and the Commanders "covered up decades of sexual misconduct":

"The Committee's investigation shows that sexual harassment, bullying, and other toxic conduct pervaded the Commanders workplace, perpetuated by a culture of fear instilled by the Team's owner. Despite the NFL's knowledge, through its internal investigation, that the Team's owner permitted and participated in the workplace misconduct, and engaged in tactics used to intimidate, surveil, and pay off victims, the NFL aligned its legal interests with the Commanders, failed to curtail these abusive tactics, and buried the investigation's findings."

The NFL also conducted its own investigation into the Commanders' workplace culture and fined the franchise $10 million in July 2021 but did not release a written report of the probe's findings.

In addition, the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of Virginia opened an investigation into the Commanders in November for alleged financial improprieties.

The franchise allegedly withheld security deposits from season-ticket holders or made them difficult to get back. It was then fined $250,000 in a settlement with Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh in relation to the security deposits.

In addition, Washington is accused of keeping two accounting books to avoid sending the NFL money meant for the league's revenue-sharing pool.

Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the team for health reasons.

His duties will be handled by vice president of player personnel Quentin Harris and vice president of pro personnel Adrian Wilson.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network first reported the news.

The news of Keim's absence comes amid a disappointing season for the Cardinals.

Arizona announced Tuesday that quarterback Kyler Murray would be out for the season after suffering a torn ACL in Monday night's loss to the New England Patriots. Additionally, offensive tackle D.J. Humphries, tight end Zach Ertz and wide receiver Rondale Moore are all out for the year with injuries.

The Cardinals have struggled to a 4-9 record this season amid various injuries and a six-game suspension to wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to start the season. Hopkins missed Arizona's first six games for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substance policy.

Arizona has one of the NFL's worst offenses, averaging 333.8 yards per game—219.1 passing yards and 114.8 rushing yards per game. Additionally, they are scoring just 21.3 points per game.

Keim is in his 10th season as general manager of the Cardinals. He began his career with the franchise in 1999 as a scout and also served in various other roles before being named GM in 2013.

Since Keim took over as general manager, the Cardinals have made the postseason just three times. They reached the NFC Championship game during the 2015 campaign, but were blown out by the Carolina Panthers 49-15.

With the Cardinals expected to miss the playoffs again this season, Keim has come under fire of late for his team's lack of success on the field. However, the 50-year-old is under contract with the Cards through 2027 after agreeing to an extension this past offseason, so he's likely sticking around for the long haul.

The NFL will not hold a game in Mexico in 2023, and it is "likely" that two games will be held in Germany instead, league executive Peter O'Reilly said Wednesday, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, where the NFL has held all of its past Mexico games, is set to undergo renovations for the World Cup, hence why the league will not have teams meet in the country next year.

Estadio Azteca is one of three stadiums in Mexico set to host World Cup matches in 2026, joining Estadio Akron in Guadalajara and Estadio BBVA in Monterrey. World Cup matches will also be played across the United States and Canada.

The Estadio Azteca renovations are expected to take two years to complete. If that's the case, the NFL may not be playing a game in Mexico in 2024, either.

The first time the NFL held a game in Mexico was 2005, when the Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers. After an 11-year absence, the league returned with a matchup between the Oakland Raiders (who now reside in Las Vegas) and Houston Texans in 2016.

The NFL also held games in Mexico in 2017, 2019 and 2022. The Los Angeles Rams and Kansas City Chiefs were supposed to meet in the country in 2018, but the game was moved to L.A. due to poor field conditions at Estadio Azteca.

In November, the NFL announced that it had committed to having an annual game in Germany through 2025, with games hosted in Munich and Frankfurt. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks played in the league's first-ever regular-season game in Germany this season at Allianz Arena.

The NFL has seen solid interest from fans in Germany, so it's no surprise the league is considering another game overseas. The Bucs-Seahawks game drove in 5.8 million viewers on NFL Network and tickets to the game were sold out, with a crowd of 69,811 attending at Allianz Arena.

In addition to Mexico and Germany, the NFL has also played at least one game in England every year since 2007, except for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Games have been played at Wembley Stadium, Twickenham Stadium and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

With at least a couple of games being played internationally each season, it's clear the NFL is committed to building its global footprint.

The Denver Broncos announced plans to spend more than $100 million renovating Empower Field at Mile High ahead of the 2023 season.

"This significant investment in Empower Field at Mile High — the largest in the stadium's history — demonstrates the deep commitment by the Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group to immediately and continually provide the best possible experience for our fans," president Damani Leech said. "As we look toward the future with the long-term plans for our stadium, we are equally focused on the present to ensure Empower Field at Mile High remains a premier sports and entertainment venue.

"We are excited to announce these upgrades to Empower Field at Mile High and are grateful for the support of our ownership group, the Metropolitan Football Stadium District and the National Football League."

The most noticeable improvement will be a massively expanded scoreboard. The Broncos will install a 72-by-225-foot scoreboard, which will rank as the fourth largest in the NFL, at their south end zone. The new board is a 31-foot expansion over its predecessor.

In addition, the team will be making improvements to its video board, two other in-bowl videoboards and the ribbon board.

Suites, concessions and the Broncos team store will also be receiving significant upgrades as part of the revamp.

Dan Snyder is expected to sell his full stake in the Washington Commanders.

Per Mark Maske, Liz Clarke and Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post, Bank of America is moving forward with the sale process of the NFL franchise by getting ready to release the prospectus to qualified potential buyers.

The report noted it's "not certain" that Snyder will sell the entire franchise, but sources believe it's most likely going to be the outcome from this process.

Dan and Tanya Snyder announced Nov. 2 that they retained Bank of America Securities "to consider potential transactions."

The move came as Snyder and the organization were under investigation by the United States House Committee on Oversight for a history of alleged workplace misconduct and sexual harassment.

In the findings from the investigation released Dec. 8, the congressional committee determined the Commanders and NFL covered up decades of sexual misconduct.

The report states that Dan Snyder made attempts to interfere with investigations into allegations of a toxic workplace. He also "permitted and participated in this troubling conduct," including inappropriately touching a former employee at a dinner and trying to "aggressively push" her into his limousine.

Former Commanders video production employee Brad Baker told the committee that team executives "tasked us with producing a video for Snyder of sexually suggestive footage of cheerleaders, obviously unbeknownst to any of the women involved."

Melanie Coburn, a former Commanders cheerleader and marketing employee, said in the report Snyder "ordered the director of the squad to parade the ladies onto the field while he and his friends gawked from his suite through binoculars."

Mike Ozanian of Forbes reported in November at least four groups had called Dan Snyder with interest in buying the NFL franchise.

Amid multiple investigations into Snyder's tenure as owner and long-term questions about his viability in that role, ESPN's Seth Wickersham, Don Van Natta Jr. and Tisha Thompson reported in October that Snyder told at least one close associate he had enough information to "blow up" other team owners, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the league office.

There has been a divide, at least publicly, among two team owners about Snyder. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones spoke out against the allegations Snyder was being investigated for.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay told Maske and Jhabvala there was "merit to consider removal" of Snyder. A vote would require at least 24 owners to approve removing Snyder from his position.

Snyder bought the Washington franchise in 1999 for a then-record price of $800 million. Forbes estimates the Commanders are currently the sixth-most valuable NFL franchise at $5.6 billion.