Are we seeing the end of Washington owner Dan Snyder’s era of terror?
It’s not enough Snyder has turned one of the great NFL franchises into the laughing stock of the league. We’ve pretty much gotten used to that with an incoming generation of fans never knowing the greatness that consumed much of 1971 to 1991. We’re back to the 1950s and ’60s when everyone knew the “DeadSkins” stunk.
Now, for the second time in a month, the Washington Post has a damning story on the toxic culture of the football team’s headquarters, where 42 women overall claim sexual harassment or poor treatment. This time, the Aug. 26 story has accusers’ names and even includes verified video tapes allegedly made for Snyder of a cheerleaders calendar photo shoot that are inappropriate at best and perverted at least.
After the first Post story, former workers are no longer afraid to claim harassment by team officials anymore. While former Washington announcer Larry Michael is often cited for alleged poor behavior, the stories touch on Snyder, too.
When Snyder first arrived in 1999, he brought a secretary from his Snyder Communications firm. This poor woman would literally run through the halls of Redskins Park scared she wouldn’t complete the task quickly enough for Snyder. She was literally breathless and afraid. It was a terrible way to treat employees and she quickly left like so many after her.
It’s one thing to push employees hard. Predecessor Jack Kent Cooke would chastise workers for simply not using both sides of paper to cut costs. However, Cooke was a master one-minute manager who after criticizing would then motivate employees, saying he knew they could do better, and they did. People worked for the team for many years. It was as close to a family atmosphere as teams could have.
Nowadays, workers cycle through the training facility so quickly they should just install revolving doors. The only two days most workers are truly happy are their first and last ones. It’s not a happy place, just something for younger workers to put on their resumes to get to a better job.
NFL owners hate to interfere in each other’s team operations for fear of it blowing back on themselves. But they hate bad publicity like this even more. It’s time for a real investigation and not one paid by the team.
The NFL needs to really know what’s happening in Ashburn, and if the Post stories are true, the league should suspend Snyder and encourage him to sell the franchise. A team president was named last week so let him run the operation. If these outrageous stories continue flowing, then it’s truly time to force Snyder to sell.
No more talking about culture. It’s just words. The NFL doesn’t hesitate to suspend players for misbehavior. It’s time to hold Snyder to the same standard.
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Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks