Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder is one of the most controversial figures in the entire league. Many Commanders fans have requested for years that he sell the team and allow it to move on from his tenure.
However, he has held firm, and it seems like he is hell-bent on bringing the league down with him if he experiences a fall from grace.
“Snyder recently told a close associate that he has gathered enough secrets to ‘blow up’ several NFL owners, the league office and even commissioner Roger Goodell,” wrote ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr., Seth Wickersham and Tisha Thompson in a bombshell report that was released on Thursday.
“‘They can’t f— with me,’ he has said privately.
“Senior team executives and confidants have heard him say it since he was considered merely one of the worst owners in sports. Now that he’s facing investigations on multiple fronts and running out of high-powered allies, he alludes more than ever to the dirty work. Snyder, now 57 years old, has told associates he will not lose his beloved franchise without a fight that would end with multiple casualties.
“‘The NFL is a mafia,’ he recently told an associate. ‘All the owners hate each other.’
“‘That’s not true,’ one veteran owner says. ‘All the owners hate Dan.'”
Many owners and top executives from the league would reportedly like to remove Snyder as owner. As of last month, the league was still investigating allegations of workplace misconduct inside the Commanders organization.
Some may say that removing Snyder is something that should be done immediately. However, it’s not that easy.
“According to more than 30 owners, league and team executives, lawyers and current and former Commanders employees interviewed by ESPN, the fear of reprisal that Snyder has instilled in his franchise, poisoning it on the field and off, has expanded to some of his fellow owners,” wrote Van Natta, Wickersham and Thompson. “Multiple owners and league and team sources say they’ve been told that Snyder instructed his law firms to hire private investigators to look into other owners — and Goodell.”
One can only wonder what type of information Snyder claims to have. It definitely could be damaging for the league and the owners of its teams if some things were to leak.
Snyder purchased the Commanders back in May 1999, and the franchise hasn’t enjoyed much success since then. It has only made the playoffs six times under Snyder and had multiple losing seasons.
The Commanders are 1-4 during the 2022 season and seem to be heading toward another disappointing campaign. After winning their first game of the season, they have dropped four straight, including games to the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys, both of whom are division rivals.
Quarterback Carson Wentz hasn’t lived up to expectations, and the team’s quarterback troubles may continue to extend into future seasons. Washington does has a solid young core with Chase Young, Montez Sweat, Cole Holcomb, Curtis Samuel, Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson.
However, it seems like it won’t be able to make any significant noise until Snyder leaves the franchise and a new stadium is built.
