The long-lasting friction between Washington Football Team fans and owner Dan Snyder isn't going away anytime soon. Just follow the money for a clearer explanation.
According to multiple reports, Snyder has reached an agreement to buy out his minority partners, in a move that would give him complete control of the organization. The NFL's finance committee recently approved a $450 million debt waiver requested by Snyder, as the total cost of the minority owners' 40.5-percent stake in team is $875 million, per the New York Times. Next week, NFL owners are scheduled to vote on Snyder's debt request -- the transaction is subject to three-fourths approval from 24 of the 32 teams.
Tyler Dunne of GoLongTD.com was first to report the news regarding Snyder, and he joined The DA Show on Thursday to discuss the deal's ramifications in greater length.
"The gist of it is, Dan Snyder is the guy. He's buying out the minority owners, that 40.5-percent," Dunne said. "So he's got 100-percent. It's his show. He's driving this franchise into the next phase... I think this is Dan Snyder looking to drive this franchise in a new, positive direction, and then as a 100-percent owner, he can kind of make those big decisions now, right? He can kind of move ahead with the rebranding of the team."
While Snyder believes he can take Washington to new heights, he's been responsible for chaos, conflict, and controversy since purchasing the team in 1999. The franchise is in the midst of rebranding its name and logo -- they'll be called the "Football Team" once again in 2021 -- and on top of that, the NFL has been investigating the team for months following numerous reports of sexual harassment in the workplace by former employees.
When asked if Snyder is capable of turning the franchise around and appeasing the fanbase, Dunne offered one example of why it's certainly possible.
"I wish I was right there, day-to-day, seeing how this organization was run," Dunne said. "But it's not pretty, obviously. Since '99, on the field, off the field, all the controversy... I get it. At least, you've seen some attempts at moving it toward that positive, optimistic direction. I think that the hire of [team president] Jason Wright, it gained a lot of love around the country for good reason. This is somebody who's extremely qualified, he's the first Black president in the NFL. They're taking a lot of even smaller steps around that within the organization to try and get out of these controversies that have weighed them down.
"And let's be honest, that investigation is still ongoing, and it hasn't been that pretty. But, I think that with this, Dan Snyder has 100-percent control. And I saw some people tweeting and writing that, 'Hey, maybe this gives him that ability to sell.' I didn't hear anything of that nature myself... It remains to be seen, obviously. Nothing in the NFL surprises you. But I haven't heard anything down those lines."
According to Forbes, the Washington Football Team, which won the NFC East with a 7-9 overall record last season, is worth $3.5 billion.
The entire conversation between Dunne and DA can be accessed in the audio player above.
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