Report: Washington Football Team likely to stick around for 2021
Washington football fans might get used to their team’s new name … at least for another season.
Team president Jason Wright told Washington TV station WJLA on Tuesday the WFT could remain when next season comes around.
“There’s a pretty good chance we will be the Washington Football Team next season,” Wright said.
“Everybody needs to take a deep breath. It’s not coming tomorrow. It’s a business decision, we need to understand that market. More importantly, it’s important to engage the community and the fans. We’re also in the process of identifying the folks that should weigh in over time. We want this name and brand to represent the entire area, to represent the fan base, but to also attract new folks to this fan base. We want to grow this fan base as part of our new identity.
I think next year is fast because of how the brand has to come together through uniforms, through approval processes through the league,” Wright said Tuesday.
“We could get there quicker, it’s actually pretty hard to get there that quickly because of all the steps that need to happen.”
Of course, the team became the WFT after years of controversy over its previous nickname. Team owner Dan Snyder has been scandal-scarred through a number of events and the NFL could eventually weigh in on his future in any number of ways.
Another issue for this season: Will fans be at FedEx Field? Not this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. How about Nov. 8 against the New York Giants. Though it would be hard to believe anyone would risk themselves in the midst of the pandemic to see either of those games in-person.
“We have the bye week coming up after this. It gives us plenty of time to be prepared to do something substantial in the coming week. We have a plan to bring back fans,” Wright said. “If you want to pencil something on the calendar, I would look at the Giants week. That gives us the right time to prepare.”
