Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has said he’ll never change the name of the team. And so, as the Washington Post points out in a new editorial, the controversy will never end.
That’s the reality zealous defenders of the name ignore. As time passes, people won’t become numb to the offensive nature of the name. Instead, more people will wake up to the reality that a word that would never be used as anything other than the name of a football team shouldn’t be used as the name of a football team, either.
And so the Post once again has called for Snyder to abandon a term that is “so offensive that it should no longer be tolerated.”
In recently explaining that the league must listen to dissenters even if only one person is offended, Commissioner Roger Goodell pointed out that, in the end, the decision lies with Daniel Snyder. Goodell is right, but there’s nothing stopping the NFL from giving Snyder a firm nudge.
Actually, Goodell’s recent comments could be interpreted as just such a nudge.
The league surely prefers that Snyder will change the name on his own, voluntarily and freely and without kicking and/or screaming. Any strong-arm tactics by the league will be met with harsh reaction from Redskins fans, who may opt out of following pro football altogether rather than buy in for a name change. If/when a name change occurs, the team’s owner will have to embrace it and advocate it.
That’s what makes Snyder’s vow to never change the name unfortunate. He already has locked in to his position, and he won’t be inclined to change it. Unless, of course, he can leverage giving up the name into getting D.C. in the Super Bowl rotation.
While there’s no indication that any deal-making of that kind could occur, Snyder would surely need some concessions from the league if he’s ever going to surrender to the inevitable push from the league office and/or other owners to get rid of the name.