When the Raiders and Chargers first proposed a dogs-and-cats-living-together arrangement in Los Angeles, it was assumed that one of the two teams would exit the AFC West.
Absent such an adjustment, at least one of the other teams in the division is strongly opposed to the move.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the Chiefs believe it would be an unfair advantage for both the Chargers and Raiders to have what amounts to an extra home game every year in the form of a road game. And it would be; both teams would have one less travel obligation per year, and that could indeed create a competitive advantage for those teams -- along with a competitive disadvantage for the other two in the division.
The easy fix would be to move the Chargers or Raiders to the NFC West. But another team would need to be willing to move. As the source said, that’s hardly a given.
The Rams undoubtedly would decline to move to a new conference if they aren’t permitted to move to a new city. The Cardinals already have moved from the NFC East to the NFC West. The Seahawks have gone from the NFC (in 1976) to the AFC (in 1977) back to the NFC (in 2002). While on one hand the 49ers possibly would consider a shift if it meant getting the Raiders out of the Bay Area, the 49ers are a fixture in the NFC. It’s hard to imagine them moving to the AFC, and essentially taking the Raiders’ place in the AFC West while yielding their own spot in the NFC West to the Raiders.
The complication further fuels the notion that, in the end, it could be the Chargers -- and only the Chargers -- moving to Los Angeles.
