If you want one specific number showing the decline of Washington’s NFL franchise, look no further than owner Daniel Snyder’s 24-year record.
Under Snyder’s direction, Washington is 56 games under .500 — a 164-220-2 record — with a 2-6 mark in the playoffs. That means Snyder’s teams have made the playoffs once every four years with a predictable result.
Meanwhile, Jack Kent Cooke, Washington’s legendary owner from 1969 until his death in April 1997, the franchise had a record of 250-169-3. That’s a remarkable 81 games over .500. To put the numbers further into perspective, Peter King of NBC Sports, in his weekly column, compared Cooke’s final 24 years as owner, in which Washington was 53 games over .500 to Snyder’s overall record.
King counted Washington’s record in 1997 and 1998 because although Cooke died before the 1997 season, his estate still owned Washington.
When Snyder took over in 1999, he actually inherited a good team. But in true Snyder fashion, he thought he knew better and began to tear it down with his ill-conceived free-agent spending spree in 2000.
Oh, care to guess Cooke’s record as owner in the playoffs? The Squire’s teams were 18-10 with three Super Bowl championships. You know, the same Super Bowl trophies Snyder would always show off in press conferences back when he made a splashy signing.
Under Cooke, Washington made the playoffs, on average, every other season.
Washington, now called the Commanders, will be sold soon. A group led by Josh Harris is expected to become Washington’s next owner. A native Washingtonian, Harris knows all too what the franchise should look like.
