Washington Commanders: Recent NFL Poll Of Coaches And GMs Shows Stunning Result On How League Views Team Heading Into 2024

Dan Snyder will officially go down as one of the worst owners in the history of professional sports — and by the time he was finally forced to sell the team — the Washington Commanders fan base was tired, broken and had little hope things would ever change.

Any fan age  35 or younger likely was born into fandom from parents or relatives that witnessed the glory years under Joe Gibbs, the Hogs and heard stories about the legendary running back John Riggins, the Hogs and the receiving corps led by Art Monk known as the “fun bunch.”

But all those Washington fans could do was watch YouTube videos and listen to stories from disgruntled older fans who had given up on the franchise they once loved after watching Snyder burn it to the ground.

Year after year, Washington Commanders fans were promised “this would be the year” things turned around — but instead — watched one of the most iconic franchises in the NFL morph into one of the worst.

He mettled in personnel decisions time and time again with absolutely no football acumen.

Early in his tenure, there was a reason that agents representing free agents wanted their clients to attract attention from the Washington owner. He blew up the market in overpaying for fading, aging players.

The formers software mogul insisted the team sign Albert Haynesworth to a record-breaking contract that ended up being a disaster. There were several decisions like that, but over time, top-tier players wouldn’t come to Washington. The toxic culture was well-known and scandal and dysfunction became the norm.

According to former Washington coach Jay Gruden, Snyder forced him to select the late Dwayne Haskins, despite the team’s head coach (Gruden) and top talent evaluators strongly disagreeing with the coveted first-round selection, they were forced to listen to Dan Snyder.

“I don’t respect the guy that doesn’t watch the film and comes in, makes the pick, and tells you who he is signing in free agency,” Gruden said in a 2021 podcast. “It makes no sense when we and the scouts are doing all of the film work, and all of a sudden, he comes in and makes the pick.”

Haskins ended up being a disaster and never looked even close to thriving as a NFL starter.

A list of where Snyder made moves to butcher the Washington Commanders would be 1,000 pages long.

There are countless examples like the time Dan Snyder lured Steve Spurrier from the college ranks in 2002 to become the coach of the now Washington Commanders. He gave the former Florida Gators front man a record-breaking $25 million contract at the time was Spurrier’s first NFL head coaching gig. And his last. He lasted two years.

• In the early 2000s, Snyder charged fans $10 to attend training camp practices – traditionally free, for decades and across the NFL – and $10 for parking. It was one of the first money-grab moves that sowed seeds of discontent with a loyal fan base.
• Until Dan Snyder’s alleged misdeeds surfaced – the workplace culture and sexual harassment allegations, followed by charges that the team tried to hide revenues to be shared with other franchises – none of the alleged transgressions rose to the level where owners seriously considered voting Snyder out.
• But finally an investigation into the toxic workplace culture and financial decisions where Snyder was literally stealing money from NFL teams was enough to

A New Era For The Washington Commanders With Dan Snyder Gone & New Ownership Making Instant Impact

Finally, an in-depth investigation into sexual allegations and financial coverups that directly took money from other teams pockets, the NFL owners voted and Snyder was forced to sell the team.

In July of 2023, just before the start of last season, the NFL owners unanimously approved the sale of the Commanders for a record $6.05 billion – with the attached condition of a $60 million fine for Snyder – during a special league meeting in Minneapolis on Thursday.

Shortly after, an ownership group led by savvy businessman Josh Harris —who is a proven and respected sports owner with success after buying the Philadelphia 76ers NBA team and Flyers NHL team — purchased the Washington Commanders. NBA legend Magic Johnson is also part of the ownership group.

From the moment they took over, there was a new energy about the future of the franchise.

Harris and company showed flashes of a culture change when the sale was finalized right around the time training camp began. One small, but notable move, was his decision to install bleachers at the Washington Commanders headquarters so fans didn’t have to stand to watch training camp practices.

Little moves like that were made all season, but the fan base anxiously awaited the first day of the offseason where Harris and company could begin to deliver on their promise to turn the Washington franchise back into one that competes for championships on an annual basis,

He fired head coach Ron Rivera on the first day of the offseason. Though the former Commanders coach is well respected throughout the league and by his players, he didn’t put together a winning season in four years as head coach. Mediocrity became the norm.

Hours after Rivera was let go, Harris unveiled a detailed strategic plan to conduct the search for the perfect general manager/head of football operations who would then help the ownership group select its next head coach. Finally, Washington looked and operated like an actual smart, successful franchise.

And after interviewing several of the top GM/talent evaluators according to league experts, the Washington Commanders landed arguably the best candidate available

. Adam Peters has served as the right-hand man for John Lynch with the San Francisco 49ers since 2017, and is widely regarded as one of the top talent evaluators in the NFL. He’s turned down multiple interview requests in the past, and despite multiple interview requests from other teams this cycle,

Peters took just one. Shortly after, the hottest GM candidate for the past several years was named as the architect for rebuilding the roster, making all personnel decisions and rebuilding a team into a talented group that can compete for a fourth Lombardi Trophy for the franchise.

That was massive for the fan base — and league insiders and top NFL media members — praised Washington for the home-run hire.

Poll Of NFL Coaches And Executives Validates Hope For The Washington Commanders Future Is Viewed As Brighter Than Ever

So while it may come as a surprise to some outsiders who haven’t followed the optimism surrounding the Washington Commanders under Harris, Peters and the new regime, fans are more hopeful than ever. The city is buzzing for the future. And apparently other coaches and GMS throughout the league are noticing.

Yahoo NFL writer Jori Epstein recently conducted a poll where she interviewed three anonymous NFL coaches and three active general managers and other executives. The question? Of the seven current head coaching openings, which is the most attractive destination and situation right now?

“he rankings are based on a points system, with a first-place ranking receiving seven points, descending to seventh-place rankings receiving one point,” Epstein explained. “With the votes tallied, here is how the field stacks up, along with the sentiments that shaped the responses.”

Here were the results:

7. Carolina Panthers (7 points: one sixth-place vote, five last-place votes)

6. Tennessee Titans (12 points: one fifth-place vote, four sixth-place votes, one seventh-place vote)

5. Las Vegas Raiders (16 points – four fifth-place votes, two sixth-place votes)

4. Seattle Seahawks (26 points: one second-place vote, five fourth-place votes)

3. Atlanta Falcons (31 points: two second-place votes, three third-place votes, one fourth-place vote)

2. Los Angeles Chargers (37 points: three first-place votes, one second-place vote, two third-place votes)

1. Washington Commanders (38 points: three first-place votes, two second-place votes, one third-place vote)

That’s right, in the first offseason without Dan Snyder, Washington is now considered the top coaching destination based on a poll of current NFL coaches and executives throughout the league. That felt impossible as recent as last offseason when the sale wasn’t finalized and fans still dreaded the worst. But things — and how the franchise is built for future success—have changed rapidly under the Harris regime.

Here’s what Epstein said about the result of the poll:

Sentiment surrounding the Commanders illustrates perfectly how wary coaches and executives are about team ownership. A year ago, candidates would avoid Dan Snyder’s team at most costs. The Commanders are now the darling among top candidates, even though they haven’t produced a winning season in eight years. League sources believe Josh Harris’ new team ownership group is committed to investing in winning. They’re eager to come in contemporaneously with a new general manager rather than afterward. Harris gained further clout when he lured San Francisco 49ers assistant general manager Adam Peters to be his general manager. And while some sources favor a Chargers team with a proven top-10 quarterback, the next-best scenario to having a quarterback in place is seeing a clear path to obtaining that quarterback. Drafting No. 2 overall in a QB-rich year is gold. C.J. Stroud in Houston, anyone?

The prospect of a new team owner, general manager, head coach and quarterback all turning over within a year opens possibilities.

“If you’re taking over as the head coach and you want to instill your culture and your belief system, it’s a truly blank slate,” one coach said. “To me, that’s more important to long-term success than anything.”

This roster needs help, but the Commanders have capital thanks to their poor win-loss record and their midseason trades of edge rushers Chase Young and Montez Sweat. Receivers Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson and Curtis Samuel should support a new quarterback. Defensive tackles Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen lay a foundation on defense. And no team has more 2024 salary-cap space, per Spotrac, than the Commanders — who, remember, won’t need to spend on the priciest asset of QB if they draft him as expected. Add in low expectations for early success, and league sources view Washington as a prime spot for an up-and-coming candidate to succeed in the long term. Harris will have a stadium project on his hands that buys a coach time. Early mediocrity, one coach said, will be celebrated the way Jonathan Gannon’s 4-13 Arizona Cardinals drew praise in 2023.

She closed the piece out with a quote from one of the NFL sources who voted in the poll that tells you just how far the Washington Commanders have come in such a short time.

“Exciting new ownership group, and it speaks volumes the fact that they were able to hire Adam Peters, who could have had any GM job he’s wanted for years now,” a polled coach said. “I think that shows you how attractive this place is.”