I’m not sure I understand what you’re asking about Billy Beane and the A’s. When you start to talk about the economics of the leagues and interactions between team owners, it’s impossible to draw comparisons between MLB and the NFL. They’re entirely different animals.
Bidwell (the owner of the Cardinals) certainly does care what Irsay (::spits:: - the owner of the Colts) thinks about him, because Irsay and the other owners are what’s making his team profitable. He’s making far more money than he would if he owned an equivalent (sad sack, mismanaged, small market) MLB franchise. If he doesn’t hold up his end of the bargain, though, the other owners can vote to change that economic structure.
During the last offseason, the owners renegotiated their revenue sharing plan with each other. You can divide the NFL franchises into tiers based on revenue potential - at the top, you’ve got the Cowboys, the Redskins, the Giants - storied teams with huge markets and nationwide appeal. These teams are enormous cash cows, even if they’re not playing great football (Mr. Snyder, I’m looking in your direction). In the revenue sharing plan, these franchises are giving up a much greater portion of their own revenues in order to keep the lower revenue franchises (like Buffalo and Arizona) viable. Implicit in that agreement is the understanding that those franchises who benefit the most from the revenue sharing plan use that cash to field competitive teams. If they just stuff it into their pockets, that stream is going to dry up pretty quickly.
Getting back to Bidwell… The Arizona Cardinals would not be a viable franchise if the NFL were run the way MLB is. Bidwell knows how much he depends on the revenue sharing plan, and he knows that the other owners vote periodically on that plan. You bet he cares what they think.