NFL Commissioner Confident Redskins Owner Considering Name Change

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said that Redskins owner Dan Snyder, who said he would never change the team’s name, is taking complaints about the name seriously,”wants to do the right thing,” and is “way down the road” in considering a potential name change.

Goodell has indicated that the NFL should listen if the Redskins name offends even one person. And though Goodell has in the past indicated that the name honored Native Americans, he is emphasizing even more sensitivity after President Barack Obama spoke on the name. On Sunday, Goodell said everyone, including Snyder, should be sensitive:

‘But I think we also have to be sensitive enough to at least listen and try to see what it is we can do if we’re insulting any element of our fan base, or non-fan base for that matter,’ Goodell said.

‘I think Dan Snyder is way down the road on doing that. I’m confident he’s listening. I’m confident he feels strongly about the name but also wants to do the right thing.’ 

On October 5, Obama said he would think about changing their name if he was owner.

Obama, in an interview with The Associated Press, said team names like the Redskins offend “a sizable group of people.” He said that while fans get attached to the nicknames, nostalgia may not be a good enough reason to keep them in place.

The Redskins played against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, which airs on NBC. Sports announcer Bob Costas decided to give his two cents in a very partisan and condescending speech. He said the name was an insult and a slur. He told Dan Patrick he was not using his position to push political causes. However, last year after Kansas City Chiefs player Jovan Belcher murdered his girlfriend and then took his own life, he used his platform to demean gun owners and push for more gun control.