MINNEAPOLIS — Representatives from all 32 NFL teams arrived in Minneapolis, Minnesota Monday for the league's spring owners meeting. But one owner was conspicuously absent: Dan Snyder.
A source told WUSA9 that the Commanders owner asked Jason Wright, the team's president, to represent their interests instead.
The two-day meeting will not feature a vote on the recently agreed upon deal to sell the Commanders to a group led by Josh Harris; the billionaire investor and his partners reached an agreement to buy the Commanders from the Snyders for $6.05 billion, but the deal still needs to approved by at least 24 of the 32 NFL owners.
According to a source, the owners are expected to finalize a future date at which they would vote to approve or deny the sale. Several of the owners WUSA9 spoke to Monday said they would look to set up a special meeting sometime after July 4. Colts owner Jim Irsay, who's a member of the NFL's finance committee, said it "would be a goal" to get the Commanders sale finalized before the start of the season "but there's work to be done."
"I think they have to do what they think is right," Irsay said of the Snyders not attending. "I think all three parties -- the league, the Harris group and the Commanders -- they want to see this deal get done."
There are also some issues regarding the Harris deal that still need to be worked out this week. According to sources, the committee raised some issues about the structure of the deal, which is currently well above the NFL’s $1.1 billion debt limit for a franchise purchase.
Harris, who owns a stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers, will also not be at the meeting. In 2020, Harris bought a portion of the Steelers for less than 5%, worth approximately $140 million.
According to an NFL spokesperson, Harris is selling his share of the Steelers and is in the middle of a new transaction.
It is not unusual for Harris to not attend the Minneapolis meeting, as limited partners usually don’t go to league meetings.
