Quote:
Originally Posted by OnceWeWereKings
Super sad today. I started watching and picked the skins as my team around 89, or 90. Man....watching that 91 suber bowl was amazing. Watching Jim kelly get absolutely thrown around by, arguably, one of the best defensive units to ever take the field was something that my 10 year old eyes were taken back by. That was it for me....I was a fan for life. All of my favorite players were on that 91 team....right down to chip lohmiller. Joe Gibbs is in the top 3 or 4 coaches to ever field a team. I remember being unbelievably proud to put on my mark rypien jersey and go to school which in my area is 80 % eagles fans, and 15% dallas fans at the time with some giants fans peppered in. Even as late as last year I bought an ernest byner jersey. I'm still unbelievably nostalgic about that team. That superbowl is on youtube, btw...if anyone wants to see the Bill's get handled. I remember watching the posse line up in the bunch formation while the hogs defended the qb so many times. It was like watching a piece of art being painted.
I embrace change, generally speaking...but this ones kind of tough to wrap my head around. This is something that's been a part of my life for 30 years. When I was at the lowest points in my life, I could still put on the skins and get together with some good friends and for at least a little bit, forget about problems....win, lose, or draw (fucking Bengals in london) I could just relax and have fun with friends and family. That's probably my absolute fondest memory about the skins. How much fun it was to just spend time with loved ones while watching play...good or bad.
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Well said.
This is the personal attachment that the protesters just don't get. It's not about clinging to the name, it's about the sentimental value.
The team could have been called the Turkey Vultures and we'd still have the same feelings.
I'm sad too. My jackass father-in-law from NY made a stupid comment in email this morning that we should be called the "Yellow Bellies" since we caved. That's not even remotely funny to me.
My son even gets it, he's still pre-teen and has the same attachment I do. He says he'll never stop wearing his Redskins gear. He has a framed Sean Taylor photo on his bedroom wall.
Another memory I left out earlier:
My wife had just delivered my son. I went home to get a few hours of sleep and when I returned to the hospital in the morning, the first thing my wife said to me when I walked into her hospital room was "SEAN TAYLOR WAS JUST SHOT". She even understood the impact it would have on me.
Such a bittersweet day, I took my son home from the hospital the same day we lost Sean. My son has a personal attachment to him as do I. He has only watched highlights and used Sean on Madden games, but he's a legend in our house.