Trent Williams is once more a cause of discontent among Washington Commanders fans.
Voting for the team's coming 90 greatest players for the franchise's coinciding anniversary first brought a couple misspelled names and a couple omitted players. Once more, it was a ready-fire-aim production.
But after fan reaction, the team added Williams and Robert Griffin. Both don't belong on the list.
First, Griffin was a one-year wonder who set the team back years. Injuries happen, no hard feelings. That 2012 season was fun, but it wasn't enough to earn a place among 90 greats.
Second, Williams is still active, albeit elsewhere. Some saw his initial omission as a personal grudge by the team after the left tackle forced his trade to San Francisco in an ugly breakup. Clearly, Williams was good enough to make this list. However, active players shouldn't be included or punter Tress Way would be a cinch.
The danger of including an active player is a potential disgrace that taints the list. What happens if an active player gets caught in a sports-betting scandal and is suspended or expelled from the NFL? He would have to come off the list. Sure, scandals happen to retired players, (See: Simpson, O.J.) but that's a different deal.
Williams' eligibility should be set aside for the 100th anniversary. By then, past grudges are settled and it won't look forced.
Meanwhile, it's a sad decade for adding players to this list. It's not easy finding 10 to declare legends. And, the list omits former general manager Charley Casserly, who won a Super Bowl plus two more as an assistant. Dan Snyder made Casserly one of his first firings that the owner later admitted was a mistake. Casserly absolutely deserves to be on this list. Trainer Bubba Tyer should also be on the list for his Super Bowl run.
Of those listed, the picks should be Mike Sellers, DeAngelo Hall, Santana Moss, Darryl Grant, Alfred Morris, Champ Bailey, Chris Cooley, Ryan Kerrigan, Stephen Davis and London Fletcher.
Morris and Bailey are a little difficult because of their short tenures. Morris only played four seasons in Washington, though with a team-record single-season mark and three 1,000-yard seasons. Bailey played five years, but entered Canton as a Denver Bronco after 10 seasons. It seems too short a stay in Washington to join immortals.
Kerrigan is the team's career sack record holder so he's a no-brainer. So is London Fletcher because the team has never replaced him since the latter's 2013 retirement. Hall, Moss, Cooley, Sellers and Davis excelled over their careers. Grant is the one throwback on the list worth taking, though choosing Chip Lohmiller is tempting.
Memory always wants to take recent contributors over those we haven't seen. But, the list is too top heavy over the last decade and should have taken a deeper dive into history. But then, it's a new era for the Commanders. Looking over the last decade brings more of a wince than wonderment.
Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks.
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