Orlando Magic are a tribute to Walt Disney. Baltimore Ravens are a tribute to Edgar Allen Poe. Anaheim Mighty Ducks however are a direct naming from a Disney movie and a cheesy one at that. I still dislike that name. I remember when the Oilers moved from Houston and Nashville wanted to rename the team because Tennessee isn't known for oil fields and such. So they changed it to the Titans? Because that is so Tennessee I guess? Not so much a problem with the name itself as much as the reasons and the process. The worst nickname in all of sports to me is the Gamecocks. I know what a gamecock is, I just think it's a terrible name for a team. One of the best and coolest nicknames is the Mean Green. N. Texas tribute to alum Mean Joe green.
I always liked that Stanford changed their name from the Indians to the Trees… but actually go by the color of thrir uniforms (Cardinal).
After they lost the name Redskins that's the same way a lot of fans felt. My two oldest brothers left; my best friend went full on Ravens and two other mates left. If Snyder hadn't turn the franchise into a dumpster fire for his 20 yr tenure the team would still have their name. Why their are some fans who defended him and say he's not a terrible owner is beyond me?
Commanders is just a weak corporate sounding name, there's no deference to the history of the area. A name of a native tribe in the area or rebels (since that's what the colonists were to the British Empire) would've been better
i was in my early 20s when that happened and remember the radio hosts of the time complaining on how Jack Kent Cooke totally screwed his son, of all things for tax purposes. How the HELL do you NOT Leave an NFL team to your kid(s)???
Snyder is a fan who should not be in charge of a team. His "buy a team" mentality has made Washington stagnate since his takeover.
As for the new name, I would have said screw the sponsors, gotten new sponsors who were ok with Redskins and kept it. I'd probably be belly up too though.
“They say all marriages are made in heaven, but so are thunder and lightning.”
― Clint Eastwood
I know, never happen. Funny because here in Massachusetts for example there are so many things that are named using Indian names including, of course, Massachusetts itself. No one has ever complained about that.
From the Algonquin word "Massadchu-es-et," meaning "great-hill-small-place.”
They should have just kept the name and changed the logo to a potato.