11/23/24
February 02, 2022
Hail to the Washington Commanders: Washington's football team has announced the adoption of the new name Commanders and new uniforms that include a black alternate jersey and second helmet. The logo is a W, which gave the team a burgundy and golden opportunity to wax poetic about fonts: "[T]he W's angled cuts, bolded lines and serifs signify forward movement and progress. The slanted elements of the stripes bordering the 'W' are inspired by military rank insignia, helping to infuse the familiar mark with elements of the team's new identity."
Agreed on the players' numbers on the helmets. Thought that was a nice throwback touch. I'm still amazed that the team agreed to leave the old name behind without any sort of contingency plan except just calling themselves the Football Team. Then again, it's Dan Snyder, so nothing should be surprising.
posted by The_Black_Hand at 11:13 AM on February 02, 2022
The Commies? This feels like a bit.
posted by tron7 at 11:16 AM on February 02, 2022
I'm still amazed that the team agreed to leave the old name behind without any sort of contingency plan except just calling themselves the Football Team.
I was amazed also. But being more of a soccer fan, I liked it and wish they had kept it. I had naively hoped it would start a trend in America. I don't hate the new name, but find Washington's color scheme of red and gold an odd bedfellow of the military theme.
posted by Ricardo at 01:31 PM on February 02, 2022
The Commies? This feels like a bit.
Exactly so. If you're the Commanders, you need an abbreviation, like Bucs or Niners. Commies is about the only nickname that rolls off the tongue.
The Comms? The league would have to consult Ron Jeremy about that.
posted by beaverboard at 04:47 PM on February 02, 2022
They must have known the Commies was inevitable, and a savvy Gen Z marketer would realize that is a good thing not a bad thing - love'm or hate'm.
posted by rumple at 05:12 PM on February 02, 2022
Commanders? Why such a comparatively low pay grade? A commander in the US Navy would not command a large vessel or unit; usually it would be a destroyer or smaller warship, an aviation squadron, or a small naval station. Being known as the Commanders limits the expectations of the team always to be in a subordinate position. Admirals would have been a better choice. The Admiral is in charge of the whole thing; he marshalls his resources and wins the battle. Admirals also are divided into four grades. Rear Admirals are the lowest grade; perhaps a member of the defensive backfield could be called a rear admiral. A misbehaving member of the team might be a Vice Admiral, and a swift wide receiver could be the Fleet Admiral. The name 'Admirals' offers many more opportunities for such sobriquets.
posted by Howard_T at 05:42 PM on February 02, 2022
They could take a pronunciation page from the late Sen. Bob Dole. He had a way of saying "President" that boiled it down to the minimum amount of verbal information possible. It sounded something like "Pre'd'nt".
The team name would be something like "C'mn'rs".
I wonder if the cheerleaders will be called the Comman-dears. That wouldn't last long. I remember the outrage that erupted when the Rams tried to name their cheerleaders the Embraceable Ewes.
posted by beaverboard at 06:55 PM on February 02, 2022
A commander in the US Navy would not command a large vessel or unit; usually it would be a destroyer or smaller warship, an aviation squadron, or a small naval station.
Nailed it. "The Captains" would also be a decent name, have an okay abbreviation in "Cap'ts" or "Caps." 06 definitely has more sway over assets and personnel. I can't help but feel like this is a step backwards from WFT, but perhaps the Commanders have a capable marketing and advertising team to sell the new brand.
posted by FLsportsman at 06:57 PM on February 02, 2022
Washington DC. isn't really a seaport or Navy town is it? Admirals would seem kind of random. There's also at least two minor league hockey teams called Admirals (Norfolk, Milwaukee)
I suggest The Washington Pentagons: if teams can be named after colours then why not shapes?
posted by rumple at 07:09 PM on February 02, 2022
Ricardo, Washington FC would have had a nice ring.
posted by The_Black_Hand at 08:44 PM on February 02, 2022
One of the things that was so handy about WFT was that with Dan Snyder in the mix, if you were writing a post and accidentally typed WTF, it was almost always appropriate.
posted by beaverboard at 09:47 PM on February 02, 2022
Washington joins the simple letters helmet club with the C Bears, NY Giants, G Packers and SF 49ers.
I think that's the weakest element of this relaunch. It works for the old school franchises that have been using them forever, but this "W" will take a long time to appreciate.
posted by rcade at 10:25 PM on February 02, 2022
The practice squad players should be known as the LTcommanders
posted by FLsportsman at 04:40 PM on February 03, 2022
I liked the WFT unis and helmets as soon as I saw them in 2020 and knew that I would not like whatever came next nearly as much. So I enjoyed the time we had with the WFT look, knowing it wasn't going to last very long.
Cleveland used to have the players' numbers on the sides of their helmets when I was a kid and they should definitely add those back.