Mold Remediation in Paradise, NV

The Athletics and the Las Vegas Stadium Authority Board will meet on Thursday to run through three agreements that are up for approval, which "will set the terms of the A’s playing at the new ballpark, how the ballpark will be constructed, how many years the team will be tied to the ballpark, and what happens if it tries to exit Las Vegas before the initial lease term of 30 years."

There will also be discussions about how the A's plan to pay for their proposed Las Vegas ballpark, and the team is expected to provide four letters that show that they have the financing available for this project. One of the letters, as reported in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, will be from John Fisher, pledging $1 billion of his family's equity toward the project.

Yet, in a report from the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the price of the proposed ballpark just went up by a significant amount, with the project now expected to cost at least $1.75 billion, an increase of $250 million dollars.

The LVRJ says that the cost increase is due to inflation, and "the addition of 70,000 square feet of ballpark features. New elements added during the stadium’s design phase include more clubs and suites, upgraded general admission spaces and player amenities. The A’s Las Vegas ballpark will be the first in Major League Baseball to offer under-seat cooling."

The way that the funding for this project shakes out inlcudes a $300 million loan from U.S. Bank and Goldman Sachs, plus the up to $380 million of public financing provided in SB 1, which was passed in June of last year. With Fisher's $1 billion pledge, the grand total that has been cobbled together is $1.68 billion, which is still $70 million short of what the projected total for the project is.

That's not a huge amount of money in the grand scheme of things, but it's awfully close to the $97 million gap between Fisher and Oakland that led to him walking away from the entire project.

It's also worth noting that the A's will be on the hook for any cost overruns, so if there are any tariffs imposed by the new administration on Canada or Mexico, then steel prices will increase, and they just happen to be the two of the biggest steel providers around. That would also make the price of the project jump up, even if everything else stays on schedule and within budget, which is really hard to count on.

There will be agreements made on Thursday that will yet again provide the illusion of progress for the A's to land in Las Vegas, but until money starts coming out of Fisher's pocketbook, it's important that this entire deal is looked at with at least a little bit of scrutiny.

The A's proposed ballpark in Las Vegas has always had some shaky math associated with it, in terms of making the deal make sense for the franchise, but if the cost to build keeps going up, that already shaky proposal could soon become untenable.

Not everyone is a Bo-liever... yet.

The Denver Broncos swept the Las Vegas Raiders, defeating them 29-19 at Allegiant Stadium despite a slow offensive start. Bo Nix continues to impress and should firmly be in the top spot for Offensive Rookie of the Year, while the Broncos defense continues to hammer opponents into submission.

After 12 weeks of hitting the gridiron, the Broncos have finally reached top-10 status, checking in at No. 10 in NFL.com's Week 13 Power Rankings. The 10-spot is good for third in the ultra-competitive AFC West.

NFL.com's Eric Edholm complimented Denver on its victory but offered misgivings that this is a legitimate contender.

“The Broncos trailed the Raiders 13-9 at halftime, but then the defense and Bo Nix wrested control of the game back in their favor in the second half. Brandon Jones' third-quarter interception helped Denver take the lead, and Nik Bonitto's strip-sack with just over two minutes left finished off Las Vegas. Nix and the offense finally logged two second-half TDs after settling for three first-half field goals. The Nix-Courtland Sutton connection has really developed nicely, helping the Broncos solidify their playoff standing. Ever since Sutton turned in the first zero-target game of his career back in Week 7, he’s been hot -- and a huge factor behind Nix’s development. Sutton has 36 catches for 467 yards and three TDs (as well as a TD pass to Nix) in the five games since. That said, are the Broncos legitimate contenders? Even with Nix’s steady play and a good defense, it feels like this team is a few pieces short of seriously challenging the AFC’s heavyweights," Edholm wrote.

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The defense sparked the Broncos' second-half comeback with Jones’ interception and sealed the game with Bonitto's strip-sack. Denver's defense keeps the offense in the game when things start slow, and closes it out when ahead.

Even without Zach Allen, the Broncos produced five sacks and two takeaways while holding Las Vegas to a single touchdown. Something to monitor going forward is the leg injury to cornerback Riley Moss, as he’s been a massive part of the Broncos' success in the secondary.

The Nix-to-Sutton connection gets more robust with each game, with the duo connecting on two touchdowns on Sunday. There was plenty of speculation and push for Sutton to be traded, but the Broncos were wise to keep him around to help Nix develop.

The Broncos are contenders for the playoffs, but they need to finish out strong and defeat the other two remaining playoff-picture teams in the AFC West to be convincing. Denver gets to showcase its postseason viability Monday night under the prime-time lights against the Cleveland Browns at Empower Field.

If the Broncos can secure another win going into their Week 14 bye, they’ll be in great shape to make the playoffs for the first time since Super Bowl 50 (2015 season).

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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/broncos/ as NFL.com: Broncos Still 'A Few Pieces Short' of Contending in AFC.