Looking at the math, it's hard to imagine Checketts' group would have gotten the 24 votes he needed to buy the Rams as long as Limbaugh was involved. Irsay has already come out against it, and it's hard to imagine New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft and Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney voting in favor. Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeff Lurie probably wouldn't risk angering Donovan McNabb by voting aye (it was Limbaugh's dig at McNabb that probably triggered the firestorm of protest by the players). Jerry Richardson, the owner of my Carolina Panthers, probably wouldn't risk angering his large black fan base by voting aye. Ditto for Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank and New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson.

Faced with this math, Checketts would have had to cut ties with Limbaugh at some point. I'm surprised it was this fast.

Update: My personal read on this--this gambit by Limbaugh was doomed six years ago, when he made those comments about McNabb. That, to my mind, explains why so many players came out so soon and said they wouldn't play for him. If not for that, he could have blown off some of his other comments as being in the heat of battle. But thrown in with his dig at the coverage of McNabb, it dragged him like an anchor.

The St. Louis press must still be digesting this--last I checked, most reports are just regurgitating the ESPN story.

Update #2: To clarify--I seriously doubt Limbaugh would have made the cut, since a lot of his past comments would have resulted in fans crashing owners' inboxes. I just think that his dig at McNabb, and the "Bloods and Crips" statement, meant this bid was dead on arrival.

Update #3: ESPN's Adam Schefter, who broke the story, just said on Sportscenter that there was already significant behind-the-scenes opposition to any group that included Limbaugh. Perhaps many of them already privately told Checketts he needed to jettison Limbaugh, and fast.

Update #4: It's confirmed--according to KSDK in St. Louis, Limbaugh is definitely out. Checketts said that while Limbaugh would have been only a limited partner with no role in the Rams' operations, his involvement had become a distraction.