This past Monday, a report by Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio said that Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder and co-CEO Tanya Snyder are close to selling the team as they both have cleared their offices.
The Commanders, otherwise known as the Washington Redskins and the Football Team, have played in Landover, Maryland since 1997. The team started as the Boston Redskins in 1932 and relocated the Washington, D.C. in 1937 when they played at Griffith Stadium before they moved to RFK Stadium in 1961.
The Redskins were a successful team, winning two NFL championships in 1937 and 1942. Later, they went on to win three Super Bowls in 1982, 1987, and 1991 under Joe Gibbs.
The team was owned at the time by Jack Kent Cooke, who owned the Redskins from 1961 until 1997 after they moved to FedEx Field. Cooke died of congestive heart failure in 1997 and the team was sold two years later to Dan Snyder. Since then, the Redskins made the playoffs six times and won the NFC East five times.
Since then, Snyder was in a battle as activists forced the Redskins to change their name despite many pleading with Snyder to not change the Redskins name. Numerous polls dating back to 2013 didn’t want the name changed. After all, the Redskins are part of football history.
Unfortunately, he bowed to the woke mob and changed the team’s name to the Football Team in 2020 and later the Commanders. It doesn’t feel right when you hear Commanders vs. Eagles or Commanders vs. Cowboys. There’s no excitement anymore to these rivalries. It’s just another team that still wears the Redskins colors. It’s a shame, because the activist, politicians, corporations, and the media pressured him into changing the Redskins name, and the majority of these folks don’t go to the games. Snyder let them win by changing their name.
Now, Snyder is in the process of selling the team. Rumors have circulated that Canadian Billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos, Philadelphia 76ers co-owner Josh Harris, Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, and former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos are interested in purchasing the Commanders.
The majority of fans know that once the sale is complete, the team will likely undergo another name change. Washington is having an identity crisis.
Last year, the Commanders acquired an option to buy 200 acres of land in Prince William County, Virginia for a potential new stadium once their lease at FedEx Field is up after the 2026 season. Furthermore, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin proposed to set aside $500,000 in the state budget to plan a potential relocation of the team.
Honestly, as much as I want the Washington Redskins to return, the damage is already done. I think whoever purchases the Commanders should relocate it to Virginia and leave the Redskins history, name, colors, and everything to Washington similar to what the original Cleveland Browns did in 1995 upon moving to Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996.
Once there, the team should change its name and be known as the Virginia Colonials. Colonials have a rich history in Virginia and would be the perfect name going forward.
