goodbye to my "fellow" Washington Redskin fans
Posted: Mon Dec 15, 2003 4:22 pm
And so my first post is to say goodbye. There will be some that say "good riddance" and "don't let the door hit you on your way out" but it's only an internet message board after all so don't waste too much angst over one post.
I have lurked here before without posting but I post now to say goodbye as I leave. I didn't even realize it was Dallas week until I noticed the score in the paper this morning. I never thought the day would come but here it is.
I grew up in a Washington suburb and was a loyal fan of the Senators and Redskins. I have never been to a Redskins regular season game because I never got tickets but I have been to a number of exhibition games over the years. I used to go to 20 or more Senators games every year. I bought Redskins and Senators clothing for myself and my family. That qualifies me as a more than bandwagon fan, I believe. I remember the Senators' last game in RFK when we tore the place up after "Bob Short Still Stinks" decided to move the team to Texas. I have not watched a baseball game since that day. Bob Short took a piece of my heart with him.
My weariness as a Redskin fan was much more gradual. I did not join the bandwagon when Gibbs won a super bowl, I remember the awful teams of the early 1960s. I remember Eddie Lebaron. I remember Nino Nanowski. I remember when we got Sonny. I remember the "get a ball free" ads that Theismann did for the Evening Star. I stormed around the room when "Mr Offensive Coach" Joe Gibbs got off to his 0-5 start.
The free agency thing started it. When free agency hit the NFL, I was no longer able to say to a collection of players "you are my guys and I love you, win or lose" because the players changed every year, sometimes every week. That was when the first crack appeared in my Redskins loyalty.
Dan Snyder drove a chisel into that crack with his idiotic handling of the team, and Steve Spurrier, who I personally detest, drove the spike into the heart of my love for the Redskins. Last year I tried to watch a few games but the interest was simply not there, not enough to make up for Spurrier in the coach's seat and Danny in the owner's box. This year I watched one game and really haven't had the heart to watch again. Snyder has ruined what was left of the Redskins to the point that I feel nothing but apathy for them. There was a time when I could have written down the entire roster and their numbers, scrubs and all. Today, I doubt I could name ten players on the team. It was "Dallas Week" and I didn't even know. I have loved the Redskins for 45 years and I didn't even know.
Good luck to you Redskins fans, I've had some great times and some teary times and now we come to the last time. And so, a long love affair comes to a dead end. Congratulations, Dan and Steve, you have killed a love that I thought would never die.
I have lurked here before without posting but I post now to say goodbye as I leave. I didn't even realize it was Dallas week until I noticed the score in the paper this morning. I never thought the day would come but here it is.
I grew up in a Washington suburb and was a loyal fan of the Senators and Redskins. I have never been to a Redskins regular season game because I never got tickets but I have been to a number of exhibition games over the years. I used to go to 20 or more Senators games every year. I bought Redskins and Senators clothing for myself and my family. That qualifies me as a more than bandwagon fan, I believe. I remember the Senators' last game in RFK when we tore the place up after "Bob Short Still Stinks" decided to move the team to Texas. I have not watched a baseball game since that day. Bob Short took a piece of my heart with him.
My weariness as a Redskin fan was much more gradual. I did not join the bandwagon when Gibbs won a super bowl, I remember the awful teams of the early 1960s. I remember Eddie Lebaron. I remember Nino Nanowski. I remember when we got Sonny. I remember the "get a ball free" ads that Theismann did for the Evening Star. I stormed around the room when "Mr Offensive Coach" Joe Gibbs got off to his 0-5 start.
The free agency thing started it. When free agency hit the NFL, I was no longer able to say to a collection of players "you are my guys and I love you, win or lose" because the players changed every year, sometimes every week. That was when the first crack appeared in my Redskins loyalty.
Dan Snyder drove a chisel into that crack with his idiotic handling of the team, and Steve Spurrier, who I personally detest, drove the spike into the heart of my love for the Redskins. Last year I tried to watch a few games but the interest was simply not there, not enough to make up for Spurrier in the coach's seat and Danny in the owner's box. This year I watched one game and really haven't had the heart to watch again. Snyder has ruined what was left of the Redskins to the point that I feel nothing but apathy for them. There was a time when I could have written down the entire roster and their numbers, scrubs and all. Today, I doubt I could name ten players on the team. It was "Dallas Week" and I didn't even know. I have loved the Redskins for 45 years and I didn't even know.
Good luck to you Redskins fans, I've had some great times and some teary times and now we come to the last time. And so, a long love affair comes to a dead end. Congratulations, Dan and Steve, you have killed a love that I thought would never die.
LongTimeFan there are many who feel the same as you, Myself included. I have just introduced my son the the world of football. He already has a great passion for the game. As a father I have to balance it with his other responsabilities. I also tell him to only look up to player with respect to thier game. It's funny he always ask me if a player is a good person or not...it's not enough for him to just be a good player. I feel I'm doing something right, he had a assignment in school to write about his hero, he wrote about me. I say this not to brag but to point out this is the way it should be. If as a father your son doesn't think you are # 1 then there's a problem. Champ Bailey may be his favorite football player but I'm his hero! My point is, you shouldn't walk away. Get involved, after yesterday's game I was driving home to Delaware and was saying to myself...why do I drive out here every Sunday. But then I realize I have a choice, I can complain, I can quit or I can try and make a difference. That's how I found this site. One final thought. almost everyday I go to work (I'm in the Air force) I have to go to the mortuary and help process the remains of my fellow military, it's very humbling to see 18 and 19 year old men and women killed. and then I remember it's just a game, there is a next or a next year
so I feel your pain, I really do!
like a good woman you just can't get em out of your system no matter how bad they treat ya. We can talk about your problems-DeHog