Wayne Weaver announced during a Tuesday news conference he will sell the Jacksonville Jaguars to Shahid Khan, ending his 18-year tenure as the owner of Jacksonville's first--and, to date, only--major professional sports team. But Weaver also said he would not sell to any buyer who intended to move the Jaguars away from the River City.
"I had calls from [prospective buyers in] California I refused to take," Weaver said. "I'd just say, 'We have no interest. We're a Jacksonville franchise.'"
Khan, who did not appear at the press conference, is expected to keep the team in Jacksonville; Weaver would not have agreed to sell to him otherwise. However, Weaver noted Khan did not commit in writing to keeping the team in Jacksonville, choosing instead to "trust in [Khan's] human nature."
The sale has yet to be completed. The NFL's owners will vote on it Dec. 14. If approved, Khan would take over the Jaguars on Jan. 4. Until then, Weaver remains in charge, as he made clear throughout the press conference, and no more clearly than when he responded to a question about whether pressure from Jags fans forced him to fire coach Jack Del Rio.
"At the end of the day, the buck stops on my desk," Weaver said.