As Peter Angelos' talks to buy and move the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Baltimore continue, one of three trustees brokering the team has hinted the group may choose to keep the franchise another year.
Steve Story, one of the three trustees appointed by late owner Hugh Culverhouse to operate the team, said it is not the trustees' intent to keep the team any longer but it is a "real possibility."
"We tried to make that clear at the beginning to take away some of the fear. That's a real possibility, and the further it goes, the more likely it is," Story said before Saturday's season-ending game in Florida, according to the St. Petersburg Times.
"The right price may not come and we may retain it," Story said of the team. "That's not our intent, but that could be the eventuality."
Angelos said he has received no signals from the trustees that they are considering anything but selling, and doing so quickly.
"It's news to me. As far as I'm concerned, the team is for sale at the present time, and the announced intention of the trustees is to sell them. We have no reason to believe there's any change in the trustees' intentions," Angelos said yesterday.
His attorney, George Stamas, will be in Tampa today to continue negotiations.
"We're in very intensive discussions with them," Angelos said.
A Bucs spokesman cautioned against reading too much into Story's comments, saying they did not signal a shift in strategy.
"[Story] has said on several occasions, if the deal does not come together, there is no reason they can't continue running the team," said spokesman Chip Namias, citing the lack of financial pressure or any from the league to complete a sale.
Meanwhile, Story said he will leave Thursday on vacation with the team's coach, Sam Wyche, and won't return until early next week, presumably slowing the talks with all interested bidders.
The trustees have said they would prefer to sell the team to someone who would keep the team in Tampa, but acknowledge their fiduciary duty to the trust to strike the best deal.
Because Baltimore has public funding in place for a lucrative new stadium and Tampa does not, Angelos can spend more on the team and still earn a profit.
Several local bidders have emerged in Tampa, but several of them have expressed concern that they would not be able to bid as high as Angelos.
On Saturday, the team posted its strongest attendance of the
season, selling out 74,301-seat Tampa Stadium.