The Washington football team is in a lot of trouble at the moment, and owner Dan Snyder is right in the middle of it all.
Reports have come out against the team. Allegations of sexual harassment and verbal abuse.
Those allegations are against people very close to the owner, as well as a few other higher ups. So this clearly is not looking good for the organization or Snyder.
And no one seems to be denying these allegations either. In fact, before the reports came out a few people were already fired and Larry Michael (Senior Vice President and radio play-by-play) retired.
This was clearly damage control before the story actual came out. It was pretty transparent though and made everyone involved (especially Snyder and Michael) look cowardly.
With that in mind, we can probably expect the league to step in. There will probably be punishments thrown around for the team, those involved in the incidents, and for the owner.
Let's take a look at Snyder in particular for right now though. Here are five punishments that the NFL should enforce on the current owner of the Washington franchise amid these allegations.
5. Fine (Donated to a Good Cause)
This is the obvious one. Snyder will absolutely be getting some sort of a fine. It's the bare-minimum that the league can do. And it's the one they can get out there immediately.
Everything else might take a little more time as all the higher-ups discussion punishments. They might even ask other owners for their opinions.
The NFL will want to be smart about everything they do though. And while it should also be swift, let's be honest with ourselves, they might drag their feet on a few things.
So that's where the fine comes in. Drop a couple million (seriously, Snyder can afford it) on the owners' head.
Don't just take the money though. This is an extremely simple (but effective) PR move that the NFL can do. Oh, one of your owners and teams did something incredibly stupid and disgusting?
Donate the fine money. Simple.
Take all the money that Snyder is fined and donate it to a good cause. Because of the sexual harassment allegations, maybe find something to do with that. Donate the money to women's shelters or something in that same realm.
It's at the very least a good step in the right direction to start everything off.
4. Public Apology
Next is another one that they can have out there quickly. Snyder needs to give a public apology. Not that crap statement that he released either.
You know, the one where he didn't take responsibility? The one where Snyder talked about changing the culture of the franchise as if he hasn't been since 1999.
If Snyder wanted to change the culture in Washington, he's had two decades to do so. So let's not pretend like this was some great call to action. It was the bare minimum.
The NFL needs to get in touch with Dan Snyder and get a real heartfelt (or as close as possible) apology from him.
Not a statement, a “press conference” or whatever we can do at the moment. Even if it's just a Zoom call or a released video.
Actually apologize for what the franchise was doing. Take responsibility know that these were people you hired and you put in a position of power. Don't pretend like you didn't have even the slightest idea of what was happening.
Let's be honest, even if Dan Snyder was mostly unaware (which seems unlikely) he had to have at least heard something. So take responsibility for that. Apologize for not doing more and apologize to everyone that was hurt.
If we're being honest, anything would be better than that piss poor excuse for an “apology” that he released.
3. Release Everyone From Non-Disclosures
This one sort of goes hand-in-hand with number four. Because in that apology, there should be something else.
Snyder should release everyone from their non-disclosure agreements. If he truly wants to get past this and make things right, this is an obvious one.
If Dan Snyder does not let everyone out of their non-disclosure agreements, it seems like he's hiding something then.
Release everyone from their non-disclosures agreements and let them speak. If he has nothing to hide, he shouldn't worry about it.
This will also ensure that everyone that should be in trouble, gets what is coming to them. That way everyone can be sure all the scum is out of the Washington organization.
Just in the report, 15 women came forward. There are likely more women (and men) that have stories yet to be told. Cutting the NDAs will help get their stories out.
And on a positive note for the franchise and Snyder, it will make everything get cleared up much quicker. It will get messy, sure. But wouldn't it be better for everything to come out now and deal with it?
Instead of having stories come out every few months for a few years and just dealing with a constant stream of it. This way, Snyder can get it over with and justice can be brought to everyone that deserves it.
2. Forced to Sell Team
Now here is one that some people might not know how to feel about. I can guarantee you most fans of Washington will be happy with the idea though.
Force Dan Snyder to sell the team. Most fans have wanted this for a long time just because the team has been so bad. Now there's a legitimate reason to get him out.
This is a disgusting story. And the fact that there were people that are reportedly extremely close to Dan Snyder involved should not sit well with anyone.
There is no way this gross amount of harassment and abuse was going on and the owner did not know about it. Even worse, there is no way people who are supposedly in his “inner circle” were involved and the owner knew nothing about it.
This is a miserable situation. And one that the NFL needs to figure out quickly. Washington already has not had the best PR in the league for a long time (for obvious reasons). Now this is just piling on.
They need a fresh start. And the NFL needs to show that they actual care and want to make a change.
There's one very easy and obvious way to do that. Force Dan Snyder to sell the team.
If we're being honest, this likely isn't going to happen. The NFL probably does not want to deal with the circus that would follow this.
It's sad though, because that's probably what should happen.
1. Suspension
If the NFL does decide to force Dan Snyder to sell the team, they need to do one more thing. I was going to say “ban” him, but that might be too extreme for the NFL.
So how about a nice suspension. Just two years or something like that.
Dan Snyder has sold Washington. Now don't allow him to put a stake in anything NFL related for two years.
It's really simple. Keep him away from the league for a little bit. This way you are showing that you took it serious and dealt with the owner.
If Dan Snyder can just buy a new team or still be involved in the NFL in some way, you could see how that would cause issues. I mean, then he was barely punished.
Give the owner a suspension. That way he is not still profiting off the league in any way.
It is easy to see how it could be offensive to those that were the victims of the sexual misconduct and the verbal abuse. If they see the person that allowed all of it to happen for two decades still prospering in the league, that sends a terrible message.
Like with the forcing of selling the team, this punishment seems unlikely.
The NFL will probably want to do the bare minimum and get passed this as quickly as possible. If they are handing out suspensions and forcing Dan Snyder to sell the team, they would be playing the long game.
Then when the team is sold, people would bring this incident up. When Snyder is reinstated and allowed to purchase NFL stake again, this incident would be brought up.
If they do the bare minimum and sweep it under the rug, they will be hoping that this all goes away in a few weeks when the next big story hits.
Snyder should be hit with some hefty punishments though. If the NFL wants to take this all seriously, this is the best route to go. Don't play games.
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