What Has Happened to the Redskins' Fan Base?

i agree 100 percent about the fans at the games. The last game i was there was the buffalo game after the ST tragedy. People were talking during the tribute and anytime i stood up to cheer there would be some "white collar" redskins fans telling me to sit down so they could see. It seemed like it was louder when the skins were on offense compared to when they were on defense. I think that its more of a business type class that goes to these games now just for something to do instead of hard nose football fans.

With the amount of money first round picks are getting, you're just as good off trading it for a proven commodity rather than someone who could be a terrible bust. For instance, not saying it will happen, but hypothetically -- what if J. Russell flops? The Raiders are completely handcuffed with a contract.I'm on record saying Russell will bust, but you raise an excellent point here--and that's as GM's around the league have wisened up, no team ever trades around or into the top 5 anymore. That's because the contracts are so great, and there is usually so much talent at the top of the draft, that you can just sit at 11 or 12 and take the player who slips through the cracks.

Having a top 5 pick is not a disadvantage if a team knows what they are doing, but there lies the inherent problem. Barring an extremely unlucky season, a team only gets to pick in the top 5 because they don't know what they are doing. So unless they restructure their management or their current management actually learns their lesson, those franchises at the top are going to continue to erroneously draft poor prospects making the entire draft look like a crapshoot.

The league is synonomous for having parity, but NFL Management is certainly one area where no parity exists. The perenially successful teams have management guys who get it and totally prey on those ones that don't have a clue.

And in that respect, I'm very glad we have Cerrato running things. Vinny may not be one of the former, but he certainly is not one of the latter and that at least gives us a chance at winning the Super Bowl under his direction.

Growing up, one of the things I remember sports announcers saying about the Redskins is that they had a very knowledgeable fan base. But, lately, I've seen that same fan base do some things that make me scratch my head.

If you go to other Web sites, you'll notice fans suggesting that the Redskins give up high draft picks to acquire big stars/head cases who may not fit with the system or the locker room. The worst part is that this has been the strategy since Dan Snyder bought the team and it's netted a 70-79 record with one playoff win. Additionally, teams like the Steelers, Patriots, Colts and Giants mainly used the draft while treating free agency as a supplement to their roster-building. This strategy has netted Super Bowl wins for the aforementioned teams.

I've also noticed fans asking silly questions on message boards -- questions that, in my opinion, a "knowledgeable" fan base would never ask. They've included, "Can we as a sixth-seeded team host a playoff game?" "Why was that play called a touchback?" "Why are they running the ball here (when there's less than two minutes left in the game, the opposition has no timeouts and you're trying to run the clock out)?"

Then, the games themselves have turned into a breeding ground for violent, foul-mouthed fans who feel like they need to drink themselves to oblivion to have a good time. You also have people who are conducting business in the stands and don't care about the game. People who leave or return to their seats when a play is in progress. People who want to start the wave in the fourth quarter of a close game when the Redskins offense is on the field. People who are more concerned about getting on the jumbotron than what's happening on the football field. People who are jumping up and down screaming when the Skins have the ball on a crucial fourth-down play. And those who keep wondering why that little clock in the corner keeps counting backwards from 40.

(Okay, I made that last one up, but you get the idea!)

Thoughts?
I would suggest if you start a thread pointing out how there is very few people who know as much as you.... that you get your facts correct in the opening statement... We beat the Lions in 99 & Tampa in 05... both of which while the team was owned by Snyder... not that it is a great record... but it is a fact.

I would suggest if you start a thread pointing out how there is very few people who know as much as you.... that you get your facts correct in the opening statement... We beat the Lions in 99 & Tampa in 05... both of which while the team was owned by Snyder... not that it is a great record... but it is a fact.

lol well played

:headbangelol well played

i agree 100 percent about the fans at the games. The last game i was there was the buffalo game after the ST tragedy. People were talking during the tribute and anytime i stood up to cheer there would be some "white collar" redskins fans telling me to sit down so they could see. It seemed like it was louder when the skins were on offense compared to when they were on defense. I think that its more of a business type class that goes to these games now just for something to do instead of hard nose football fans.

I've noticed that, too! A little known fact is that the "Quiet! Offense at Work!" sign came from Indianapolis -- a city that didn't even have pro football until the '80s. Yet, the Indy fans seem to know better about helping out the offense that our fans, even though we've had football since 1937.

I would suggest if you start a thread pointing out how there is very few people who know as much as you.... that you get your facts correct in the opening statement... We beat the Lions in 99 & Tampa in 05... both of which while the team was owned by Snyder... not that it is a great record... but it is a fact.

Excuse me, Rich, but Snyder took over the team in the middle of the '99 season and didn't start putting his stamp on the team until 2000. So, technically speaking, the Snyder regime started in 2000, not 1999.

Excuse me, Rich, but Snyder took over the team in the middle of the '99 season and didn't start putting his stamp on the team until 2000. So, technically speaking, the Snyder regime started in 2000, not 1999.

I could have sworn he took over in May 1999. Which is the middle of the year, not the middle of the season though.

I could have sworn he took over in May 1999. Which is the middle of the year, not the middle of the season though.

But, he didn't start making decisions on the team until 2000, when he started bringing in the likes of Jeff George and Deion Sanders, among others.

But, he didn't start making decisions on the team until 2000, when he started bringing in the likes of Jeff George and Deion Sanders, among others.
See.. your wrong

As Smoot said... he purchased the team in May of 99... I will guarantee once his $$ was in... then the buck stopped with him:

Daniel Snyder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Snyder)

Now... how knowledgeable do you look now (not that I am a Einstein... but I am not claiming to be).

But, he didn't start making decisions on the team until 2000, when he started bringing in the likes of Jeff George and Deion Sanders, among others.

Whatever. Your orginal post said one playoff win since Snyder bought the team, and Redskin Rich called you out on it. Getting back to the original theme of this thread, the most ignorant fans are not necessarily the ones who lack knowledge it's the ones who aren't willing to gain any.