As the Dan Snyder era in Washington finally nears its end, when did you first know that Snyder’s tenure as owner was destined to be a disaster?
Kevin Sheehan revealed his during Monday’s show, but first, he listed some other candidates.
“It was not free agency in 2000, when he traded like a fantasy football team,” Sheehan said. “There were players signed during that period that I was legitimately excited about.
“The first time I was really mad as a fan, and simultaneously concerned…when he ran Marty [Schottenheimer] after one season. I still consider that to be the single biggest football mistake of Dan Snyder’s tenure. He had a coach that was going to win double-digit games every year. We don’t know what would have happened in the playoffs…but that was a period in which I was angry and concerned, but I don’t think I was convinced yet.
“The 2008 draft for Washington, maybe one of the worst drafts in NFL history…just horrific.”
Still, Sheehan wasn’t sold on Snyder being a flop until one specific game: Oct. 18, 2009, when 2-3 Washington lost 14-6 to the Chiefs at FedEx Field.
“The first real moment that I knew this was just a disaster and probably wasn’t going to get better as long as he owned the team, was probably 2009,” Sheehan said. “I think this was the first massive bleak point for the franchise. You had a coach in Jim Zorn who was talking about complying to keep his contract and continue to get paid. They had to settle on Zorn…it was the first time we saw that people wanted to avoid Washington because they knew what a horrible owner and a horrible person to work for that Dan Snyder was. His second season in 2009, when the season started to come apart…I remember thinking ‘Wow, this fanbase, and the way I feel, is much different.’
“The place was empty in the second half of a one-score game…that was rock bottom number one for me.”
There were more rock bottoms to come, but that is expected to all be over on Thursday when the sale will be approved.
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