The Snyder Era : an NFL rival viewpoint

Washington Commanders fans are never shy to offer opinion on Daniel Snyder.

A once-great franchise has struggled on the field for the majority of the Snyder ownership, and the off-field scandals are numerous, appalling and has not made the Redskins/Football Team/Commanders a destination of choice for both coaches and player personnel.

Here at UKHTTC, we also wanted to explore how an NFC East opponent might view the Dan years, especially as there is a groundswell of feeling that we might just be seeing the final chapter in this sorry saga.

James Masini is not just a New York Giants fan; he also is a UK NFL aficionado and co-host for the Pigskin Podcast.

Ignoring the subpoenas, egregious corporate negligence, the dog-whistle racism etc and focusing on the football, what is Snyder’s legacy?

The obvious one is as an owner who has done little to advance the position of his franchise.

Two playoffs win in 21 years is not pretty. 10 Head Coaches during his tenure also shows that Snyder’s impatience is partially to blame.

However, for every high profile hire - like frisky then-Bengals OC Jay Gruden were positive for a while; delivering Snyder’s only back-to-back winning season - there was a Steve Spurrier, a man who was so tactically inept, he left his Offensive Line woefully under prepared to face NFL-level opposition.

On the field, Snyder’s Washington sides have offered much and failed to deliver. However, some of the impacts are still felt today. The league-wide earthquake following Robert Griffin III’s dazzling rookie year arguably opened the floodgates for the mobile QBs who had been consigned to the arena leagues since Steve Young retired.

Defensively, Snyder has always sought coaches who will dial up aggressive, pro-active defenses. As a Giants fan, I still have nightmares about the likes Ryan Kerrigan, London Fletcher and more recently, Chase Young and Jonathan Allen.

Yet for all that, pairing a good Offense and good Defense has always proved elusive.

The current QB quagmire is the latest thing holding back the Commanders, but QB has been an issue throughout the Snyder-era.

From injury riddled QBs like RGIII and Carson Wentz, to the over-drafting of Dwayne Haskins and the baffling over-compensation (a first and third round pick) for Jason Campbell, Snyder has never had control over his decision-makers. Favouring headlines over logic has held the franchise back.

The headlines now, of course, are not about the football.

As Snyder’s reign nears an end, there is not much of a legacy to celebrate. Taking two years to rebrand the team, leaving a stadium in literal tatters and a roster bereft of depth.

The NFC East will miss the Washington traveling circus of sleazy chaos but as a fan of the league more broadly, change in Washington is much needed and ultimately, must be viewed positively.