Los Angeles, welcome back to showtime

Christmas Eve, 1994. The Los Angeles Rams took on the Washington Redskins at Anaheim Stadium. They lost, 24-21. For the Rams, the defeat concluded a miserable 4-12 season and capped a seven-game losing streak. The game was played in front of 25,705 fans.

Meanwhile, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Raiders fell to the Kansas City Chiefs. They would miss the postseason, finishing 9-7. The crowd was much larger in Los Angeles proper, bringing in 64,130 spectators.

Come 1995, there would be no more NFL to watch in the City of Angels. The Rams were leaving for St. Louis. The Raiders were moving back to Oakland.

For the following 22 NFL seasons, Los Angeles lay dormant. The Rams would cruelly win a Super Bowl in 1999. They did so with the Greatest Show on Turf, a team made for the bright lights of Los Angeles, Instead, the good folks of St. Louis got to indulge in the spectacle, leaving Tinseltown to watch from half a country away.

For years, Los Angeles desperately tried to lure an NFL franchise back. In plain thinking, it made no sense for America’s most popular sport to not have a franchise in its second-largest city. Due to stadium issues and financing roadblocks, the dream seemed worlds away.

Then, it happened. The San Diego Chargers, Raiders and Rams all applied to relocate for Los Angeles. With a viable stadium proposal in hand, Los Angeles was able to officially reel in the Rams on Jan. 12. The Chargers may join them before the 2019 NFL season, when the 80,000 stadium costing $2.6 billion will be ready.

In the interim, Los Angeles has the NFL back. The Rams will play in the L.A. Memorial Coliseum, the site of the first Super Bowl. It was also the team’s home from 1946-79.

For fans of an older generation, this is a franchise coming home. Los Angeles was long a tentpole of the NFL, consistently setting attendance records with its large, grandiose venue. Then the Rams moved to Anaheim in 1980 largely due to the NFL’s outdated blackout policy. It was a mess, and the beginning of the end.

Los Angeles has long held the reputation of being a challenging city for a professional team. If the record is good, the stars and citizens will show. If the losses outnumber the wins, the beach is a better option. Factor in the amount of transplants in Los Angeles, and cultivating a dedicated fan base has myriad problems.

The city will have its chance to prove otherwise, though. The Rams are a fascinating case study, since they have not reached the playoffs since 2004. Running back Todd Gurley is a phenom and quarterback Jared Goff is the 2016 first-overall pick and a local boy, but the star power is severely limited. Los Angeles won’t be a team with Super Bowl aspirations for years. Does the city have the patience for a continued rebuild, or will empty seats begin cropping up?

The L.A. Memorial Coliseum further complicates matters. Most NFL stadiums range between 60-70,000 seats, and rarely have problems selling out. The Coliseum is an outdated behemoth which seats more than 93,000 for Southern California football games. When the Rams play, the configuration is approximately 80,000.

If the team draws 70,000 per game, the attendance will be terrific. The optics will be a legion of empty seats in Los Angeles, with a bad team on the field.

Initial interest should hold Kroenke and Co. over until the new stadium opens its doors. While the Rams are not a particularly fun draw with a lackluster offense and an anonymous roster, the allure of the NFL should make all the difference. If the preseason sellout in Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys wasn’t proof of that, perhaps the loud cheers in the fourth quarter of a Week 2 preseason affair versus the Kansas City Chiefs is.

The message from the remaining fans on that Saturday night was clear. We have the NFL back in town, and we are going to appreciate it. Whether that sentiment lasts for decades remains to be showcased, but the start has been promising.

With the 2016 NFL season rapidly approaching, there is  rampant anticipation. Come Week 2, the Rams will play their first-regular season in the city of Los Angeles since 1979 when they host the Seattle Seahawks. The result of the game will pale in comparison to the millions who have waited for the moment over two decades.

Despite remaining critics about St. Louis getting jobbed by the NFL and, Kroenke, there will be celebration coupled with jubilation on the west coast. The Rams are back in a city where they called home for 49 years. The only detail missing are those gorgeous blue and yellow uniforms of yesteryear.

Then, the celebrations and exclaiming will subside. The Rams will go back to being a bad team in a very good division. Goff will sit behind veteran backup Case Keenum, with the rookie facing a very steep learning curve. Gurley will be the lone draw in a city that needs many. It will be a season on charity for a franchise that may need more than a few.

Los Angeles needs to show it can wait for a winner. It is something the city has always failed at, whether it be the Kings, Dodgers, Clippers (nobody blames them here), Lakers, Rams or Raiders.

On the positive side, the NFL is in this for the long haul. Should the Rams take a while to gain traction in the standings and fans are lukewarm, the league won’t be pulling the plug. A second failure in Los Angeles would leave commissioner Roger Goodell and the 30 NFL owners who approved the move with ample egg on their collective faces. Millionaires and billionaires don’t like that.

After 22 years, Los Angeles is back in the game. It’s showtime.