A few years ago, Donald Trump unsuccessfully tried to purchase the Buffalo Bills for a reported $1 billion. But instead, the organization was sold to Terry Pegula, who also owns the NHL's Buffalo Sabres, for a $1.4 billion price.
While that would seem to be ancient history—especially since now the guy's the freakin' president—it is being brought up again by some owners who think his inability to join the big-shot team owner fraternity is why he has such a bug up his ass when it comes to ensuring NFL players stand for the national anthem. His most recent comments on that subject came via Twitter (as usual) on Wednesday:
"This is a very personal issue with him," Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan told USA TODAY following ownership meetings on Wednesday in Manhattan. "He’s been elected President, where maybe a great goal he had in life to own an NFL team is not very likely. So to make it tougher, or to hurt the league, it’s very calculated."
Khan went on to put things into perspective. "Let’s get real," he said. "The attacks on Muslims, the attacks on minorities, the attacks on Jews... I think the NFL doesn’t even come close to that on the level of being offensive. Here, it’s about money, or messing with—trying to soil a league or a brand that he’s jealous of."
As pointed out by USA TODAY, Khan was one of seven NFL owners who donated a fat wad of cash to Trump, doing so with a contribution of $1 million to his inauguration fund. When asked if he regrets that, Khan stated: "I have no regrets in life."
Additionally, ESPN's Adam Schefter, who is a league insider if there ever was one, stated that the Jags owner is far from the only one of his peers who holds this view. "Shad Khan is not the only owner who feels that way," Schefter said on ESPN Radio. "I have had other owners say the exact same thing to me."
That's easy enough to interpret.
Schefter also said owners believe the president has dug in with the fervor he has due to a personal vendetta against Roger Goodell. "I can tell you that there are other owners who believe that part of the reason that Trump has gone after the NFL as aggressively as he has is because he believes Roger Goodell had a hand in preventing him from buying the Buffalo Bills back when they were for sale," Schefter relayed. "And because he has not been included in that ownership fraternity, he is now waging his own little vendetta against the NFL."
Personally? I just think he really wants all the applause.
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