Angelos never believed that any of his internal actions would wind up in the public spotlight. Anything he ever did at his law firm or around his tavern wasn’t subjected to public knowledge or criticism. He was totally accustomed to operating in a bubble and now the sports media and others would be evaluating every action.
It was the downside of public life that Angelos never truly knew because he hadn’t lived in that world as a “below the radar” attorney who only thought he wanted to be famous. And being in the public eye well into his sixties was Angelos’ goal all along and he truly believed he’d only get the shiny side of fame. He thought Baltimore would fall as in love with him as he was in love with himself and his purported image.
And all Angelos wanted at this time was attention and love from Baltimore sports fans.
And amidst the daily drama of a noxious baseball strike and the comings and goings of more front office and management personnel – and in an offseason when there were no “offseason acquisitions” on the field or in free agency because the entire sport was shut down – Angelos turned his attention to another place where he could get a daily dose of attention and determination while baseball was on an expensive, ugly hiatus.
The only thing that could replace Major League Baseball in Baltimore would be the National Football League. The league and its commissioner Paul Tagliabue had just told Gov. Schaefer that he should “build a museum” in Baltimore instead of recruiting and NFL team.
Less than two years earlier, several MLB owners and insiders told him that he need not bother trying to acquire the Orioles and six months later he owned the franchise. Now, heading into 1995, Angelos believed he was the man who would do the impossible, twice.
Angelos was determined to get an NFL team back in the Charm City and was ready to do anything necessary to make it happen.
