One hundred days after Dan and Tanya Snyder announced they had hired Bank of America Securities "to consider potential transactions," a new report indicates the sale of the Washington Commanders "isn't going well."
That is what Josh Kosman, a business reporter for The New York Post, told The Team 980's Kevin Sheehan this week in an interview that revealed details about the Commanders only attracting two bidders, the team's middle-of-the-pack revenue, Jeff Bezos' interest in the team, and the possibility that Dan Snyder may be tanking the sale process in a bid to keep the franchise.
Here are the big takeaways from this wide-ranging, half hour interview:
The real price and the current bidders and their cash crunch
"Dan Snyder behind the scenes has a $6 billion minimum price. There are really two suitors, one is Josh Harris, who owns the Philadelphia 76ers, and there's a mystery bidder. Both of them are having a hard time getting to $6 billion, they don't have enough cash," Kosman told Sheehan at the interview.
Kosman indicates that earlier reports of bids around $6.3 billion (and some reports of "well north" of $7 billion) weren't necessarily completely inaccurate, as that Dec. 23 round was just "indications of interest" as opposed to binding bids. Kosman said there were two indications of interest at around $6 billion. But he added that both Harris and the mystery bidder do not have the cash to make a $6 billion bid right now.
"I think both parties are scrambling for co-investors," Kosman told Team 980. "And they both may not believe, from what I understand, that the team is worth $6 billion... why should Washington be worth six [billion when the Denver Broncos sold for $4.65 billion and] you probably also need to build a new stadium which will include some private financing. So I think they're both hesitant about it being worth six and they both are scrambling for co-investors."
Kosman added that both Harris and the other bidder would need minority investors to take on "significant interest" in the team to make the purchase at $6 billion.
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What happened to the other bidders?
Reports in Dec. 2022 indicated there were "at least five and possibly as many as seven" bidders expected for the Commanders. Kosman said he thinks basically the asking price was too high for them to continue.
"So the Commanders generate – once one saw the sale books – they generate about $150 million in profit," Kosman told Sheehan. "So there's no shame in that, but put the multiple on 6 billion and that's a huge number. And the realization that you'll probably need to build a new stadium with some [and possibly all] private money... so that's a big price. So, I think as suitors dug in, they got less excited."
One of the suitors who Kosman believes dropped out after looking at the numbers was Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club owner John Henry.
(Kosman added that the $150 million in profit was "average-ish for an NFL team" and "because of revenue sharing and national TV contracts, every NFL team basically makes money, 150 is kinda par for the course.")
Is Snyder willing to sell the team for only $6 billion?
"It's hard to get inside Dan Snyder's mind," Kosman said. "So, I'm not going to pretend to know what he's thinking... So, there is the possibility he set this up for failure. He never wanted to sell anyway, this [process] gave him cover from the Congressional hearings.
"So he set a number that he didn't think anyone would reach, if they did fine, but if they didn't ok. Then he says two months from now, 'I couldn't find an adequate buyer, I'm keeping the team," Kosman told Team 980. "And perhaps, by that time, if there's not a lot in the Mary Jo White investigation that forces the NFL to force him to sell he gets to keep the team. So there is that thought."
Kosman added that Snyder could part with the team for less than $6 billon and would still walk away with a handsome return on his investment of $750 million in 1999.
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What about Jeff Bezos?
"Of course, the wild card in all of this is Jeff Bezos, who's long-wanted to buy the Washington football team," Kosman said, before adding that while he is "not in the process right now, but sources think is buzzing around and may certainly be asked when this process sort of fails, 'hey would you like to buy the team for $6 billion?' So that's the very interesting wild card."
Kosman mentioned that Bezos was not planning to attend Super Bowl LVII in Arizona, despite regularly attending the event in the past. And, while there "could be an innocent reason that has nothing to do with Commanders sale" he skipped the game, if Bezos is "trying to be stealth and will ultimately buy the team, you wouldn't want to show up. And the speculation is, that may be what's going on."
How interested is Bezos and does the league want him as an owner?
"It's Washington or Seattle," Kosman said on Team 980. "He has let it be known to NFL insiders, 'I'd like to buy an NFL team' ... and he has made it clear he wants one of two teams... Washington on the market, while Seattle might very well be going on the market in the next year or two so this is his window."
Kosman added that the best bid Snyder receives may be less than $6 billion in the busted auction, and if Snyder says no to the highest offer and the NFL owners indicate there are 24 votes to remove Snyder then "I think there's a pretty good chance Bezos buys the team, the NFL's been courting Bezos, if Bezos could buy it without Snyder's interference since they don't get along, I would think Bezos wins."
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What is the best estimation for what happens?
"The owners meeting is on March 26," Kosman said, "so they'll want a resolution by then. Meaning the NFL will want a resolution by then. That's not that far away."
Kosman made clear that he believes he knows – while not being inside the process himself – that the process of the sale is not going as well as Bank of America, who Snyder hired to handle a potential transaction, wants the process to go.
He added that Snyder's ultimate goal isn't known and "maybe he's set this up to fail." But as of right now, if the goal was to get to a sale, "it's not going according to plan."
Kosman's gut is telling him that when late March rolls around Snyder "will try to hold on to the team and then we'll see where this goes."
"It's a fascinating process, it's not clear how it's gonna end up," Kosman added. "But the bad news, I suppose if you're a Commanders fan and you wanna see a sale, is the process right now is not going according to plan. It doesn't mean it will end up as a failure, but right now it's not going well."
Follow @BenKrimmel and @Team980 for more.
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