A Year Into Josh Harris Era, Commanders Unable to Fully Break From Past

The Commanders’ post–Dan Snyder era officially hits the one-year mark Sunday. 

And for all the changes and goodwill that Josh Harris (above, left) and the rest of his ownership group created since his record $6.05 billion purchase of Washington became official on July 21 (a day after NFL owners gave their blessing), escaping the past has proved difficult on two fronts: the team’s identity and the franchise’s stadium situation. 

The Commanders, a name picked under Snyder in the aftermath of ditching the franchise’s former divisive name, remains unpopular locally and nationwide. While the team’s revamped management team understands issues with the name, multiple sources with knowledge of the subject told Front Office Sports there isn’t an effort underway to move on from “Commanders” just yet.  

“A rebrand is not something the team is currently focused on,” a source close to the team told FOS. “The team on the field, fan experience, and future stadium are the focus.”

Says another inside source: “There’s no certainty that a name change will happen because what if the Commanders go 13–4? Will there still be questions about the quality of the name?”

The Commanders went 4–13 in Harris’s first season, not that he could do much to improve the team—including the roster—since he got the keys to the franchise days before the start of training camp a year ago. A slew of changes, however, were made after Washington finished a seventh consecutive season without a winning record. 

Since January, the Commanders brought in new general manager Adam Peters (above, right) and head coach Dan Quinn (above, middle); a new team president is on the horizon with Thursday’s news of Jason Wright stepping into an advisory role; and positive player personnel moves were highlighted by the selection of LSU’s Jayden Daniels with the No. 2 pick. Those amount to the biggest organizational change an NFL team has likely undergone since Jerry Jones acquired the Cowboys in 1989. 

“Because they took over the team so late and they did the correct thing by blowing out [head coach] Ron Rivera and a lot of the old guard, I think this season will be a honeymoon season,” says Chris Russell, a host on The Team 980, a Washington-area sports-talk radio station. “Fans will give them plenty of rope and plenty of leniency. The problem is that if the Commanders go 4–13 again and you still don’t have any more definitive idea of a new stadium or on the name issue—which is never-ending and is suffocating the life out of the franchise—I think that’s when you will have a problem even among the team’s most ardent supporters.”

The team name and stadium are intertwined when it comes to the chances of the Commanders returning to their former longtime home in D.C. Sen. Steve Daines (R., Mont.) has effectively held up legislation that would give The District a 99-year lease for the federally controlled land where the old RFK Stadium continues to be dismantled. 

Daines voiced opposition to the legislation that passed the House earlier this year until the Commanders give some meaningful public recognition to recognize the contributions of Walter “Blackie” Wetzel, a member of the Blackfeet Nation who contributed to the design of the logo used from 1972 to 2020. Ryan Wetzel, a grandson of the late Walter Wetzel, told FOS last week that plans are in place for the family to attend Washington’s home opener Sept. 15, and a plaque to honor Walter Wetzel at Commanders Field is in the works. 

Daines, however, is pushing for the Commanders to bring back the old logo, something there is still resistance to on the team and league level, according to multiple sources with intimate knowledge of the matter. 

Washington has brought back the franchise’s traditional gold pants, and the NFL has recently begun to use old footage on social media that doesn’t obscure the old logo, something that the league avoided since Snyder—who was under pressure by a then co-owner and others—abandoned the old name and logo in July 2020. The NFL didn’t return multiple requests for comment about the new use of old team footage on social media.

If Daines and potentially others in the Senate (including Maryland’s two senators) aren’t satisfied with the RFK Stadium bill, D.C. could be effectively off the table. And even if the bill passes the Senate and is signed by President Biden, there are no guarantees a stadium will be built on the land as the lease allows for other uses, like parks and residential development.

The Commanders are committed to playing at Commanders Field through 2027 and will likely have to play at least one more season at the lowest-ranked stadium in the NFL. While there’s an outside chance that Washington could play at a new home in ’29, one source said it’s more likely that a fresh domed stadium will be ready closer to ’30—which would mean six more seasons at their current venue. The Commanders own the land and the stadium, and the team has made millions of dollars in upgrades to make the next few years tolerable for fans, including an all-inclusive food and beverage premium suite space that will debut this season. 

“It’s clear the fans are receiving a better experience because of their leadership,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore told FOS. “From faster entry into the stadium from parking lots, to improved food and beverage options, to sound system upgrades, it shows that they are working around the clock to provide a world-class experience to their fans.”

Moore and other state legislators are pushing to keep the team in Landover with a new stadium next to the existing one—which doesn’t have a lot of fan support outside those who live near the 200-acre plot. Virginia is currently studying the creation of a stadium authority toward finding a home for the Commanders in northern Virginia. 

Meanwhile, Commanders ownership has been mum on its intentions for where the next stadium will go, although sources close to the franchise told FOS that team officials are monitoring the developments in the Senate on the progress of the RFK Stadium bill. 

Over the first year under Harris, there were positive signs on the business side, including: 

• A 53% increase in suite revenue, the largest improvement over that span in the NFL
• Total ticket revenue climbed 28.4% 
• Season ticket sales were up 12% and club seats sold at a higher rate than any NFL team

“There is a real excitement surrounding the Commanders franchise that hasn’t been seen in a very long time, and that is happening because of folks like Josh Harris, [and co-owners] Mark Ein, Mitch Rales, Magic Johnson, and the entire ownership group that has clearly poured their heart and soul into this franchise,” Moore says.