ThomasTomasz

Refund finally came through a few days ago. 

Just played Walden in Crofton on the recommendation of some friends.  Thought it was OK but charged way too much for the shape of course.  Not only that, but between the four of us, we lost at least 40 golf balls.  Most of them we called non-stroke penalties because we all knew where the balls went, but everything hit and fell under the grass clippings.  Non-existent fairways on some holes, too and sand traps filled with water.  At least the greens were solid- I played a local nine hole course a few weeks ago and their greens were half-dead, with crab grass throughout.  

I like seeing the positive comments on Renditions.  I need to golf there more since it's the closest course to me.  Price has definitely gone up since I last played there, though. 

On 8/28/2020 at 8:57 AM, Spaceman Spiff said:

I really liked the OH, it was a good place to discuss the Orioles.  None of my friends care about them so if I wanted to have a discussion, I'd go there.

 

Tony's post is dripping with irony.  Instead of wanting to have a place where people can come together and talk about baseball and put differences aside, he just axes the thing indefinitely because he feels like the liberals are taking over.  Much like all the athletes boycotting a game for a day, this move doesn't do anything to help.

While I admit that I do not like things to mix with sports, I don't begrudge what the players did.  They have every right, but fans have every right not to tune in as much as they used to, which is kinda where I am at right now.  Sports are my escape from all of this real life stuff.  We all need an escape.  I spend a lot of money on Orioles and Washington Team Football tickets, parking and concessions in a year.  While I don't see myself not going to games at all, I am likely to drastically cut back and find another escape for me- I am thinking about a private golf course membership, or a boat since I live on the bay.  

In this instance with Tony, he's going to get lambasted for re-opening OH and rightfully so.  You can't walk back what he did, and not expect people to not have a reaction- the same reaction (with different reasons) that he had to the game being cancelled.  People will wonder if politics are fair game because of the few things he's done over the past couple months.  Some won't visit at all, or will reconsider how much they visit- losing him money in the process.  This just doesn't make any sense.  He shouldn't have done anything and just continued to operate the site as normal, or just sell out his shares to someone who wants it.  If I didn't have so much going on in my life right now, I'd offer to buy him out as I used to run my own forums (and still manage a big sports one) but I am going back to college starting tomorrow and don't have it in me.  It's also a lot of work for not a lot of money.....I much prefer not having ownership skin in the game and just enjoy the community management portion of things. 

9 hours ago, SkinFanInMinn said:

And there goes Milone to the Braves. First piece to fall.

 

And Givens to the Rockies. 

Great trade with the Rockies.  Nevin looks like another Mountcastle- all bat, no position home, but struggled last year in AA. I really like Vavra.  Looks like he can be a top of the order, disciplined hitter with good defense at 2B.  All for a reliever who has struggled to close with only one more year of service after this.  

1 hour ago, abdcskins said:

 

I knew from first time I saw him that he was a bad pitcher. Hopefully he won't be on this team much longer.

 

Seems Mountcastle may be legit though.

Correct, Sulser isn't that good.  I really want to see Tanner Scott get some of these high leverage innings now.  He's another guy who has to put it together now. 

6 hours ago, nonniey said:

Don't get why anyone would buy season tickets. Basically throwing money away as you can get almost any seat on a weekly basis at a significant discount. 

Some people like having the seats in certain locations, like the aisle, in the 200 section under cover, or any number of reasons.  Also, the parking passes you buy are cheaper than just about anything you can get on the secondary market.  I got purple passes this winter for $50 each game, and I paid $75-100 on the secondary market the past two years.  

Also, if the team has an upswing, then you have your preferred location locked in.  

Personally, I found great seats that I enjoy, and I am going to ride it out until they relocate.  If it goes to DC and the tailgating scene is non-existent, I won't carry my tickets over.  If it is deep into Virginia, the same thing will happen.  I'm also not paying an exorbitant PSL fee either. 

4 hours ago, Howie411 said:

 

Did you notice at the bottom of the link for picking refund etc it says:  "Premium Members (Club & Dream Seat Members) will automatically have an additional year added to their membership agreement."

 

 

Not that I have premium seats but is that even legal?   I find it hard to believe the folks who have those seats contract says they can do that if fans aren't allowed in the stadium.

 

I did notice that.  Part of me things they probably have a force majeure clause in that contract, but knowing how little they sometimes pay attention to the details, I could also see it not being in there.  I imagine quite a few people are going to be taking a long look at their contracts. 

On 8/11/2020 at 5:59 PM, Skinsfan1311 said:

I got the email today and opted for the refund.  Mrs. Skinsfan is so disgusted with the whole name change thing, (and the NFL in general) that she will never attend, or watch,  another NFL game again.

I'll have to find someone to split my tickets with. If that doesn't pan out, I'll give them up and hit the aftermarket for games.  

Here's the gist of the email. I chose the credit.

 

Honestly, the aftermarket might be where I am at as well.  I like where I sit, but with club level seats coming down and the weather being an issue later in the season, I might look at the secondary market too.  I admit, I have a low opinion on Ron Rivera, and I think this roster is pretty devoid of talent, so I think turning this around is going to take two seasons until we see a team that is legitimately ready to make moves.  Combine that with how everyone hates the current stadium and a new one still in limbo, I expect the secondary market to be the much better option at this point.  

Heck, with the bars currently located in each end zone with Red Zone on all TVs, you can just get cheap tickets for the upper deck and stand at the bar for most of the game.  Most of the lower level fans stand anyway due to the dream seats. 

22 hours ago, Last House said:

The ticket office called me today, they wanted to know if I wanted a refund and if I had any questions. First thing the guy told me was the first 2 home games would be empty stadium games and the rest of the season was wait and see. I was surprised to hear that, since that's not what the email they just sent me, that day said. I asked if there was going to be any incentive to not take the refund, he flat out said no, but would let me know if that changes. I got the feeling it wasn't going to change, but I don't think they are sure about anything.  I guess the incentive would be if they said you could come to game 3 or whatever, you would already be paid up. The guy on the phone, called the team the Redskins, every time, when referring to the team. I don't care, but it surprised me. I got the feeling the whole thing was a fly by the seat of your pants operation. Especially, since one day they send me an email asking if I wanted to go to the games, the next day they send me an email saying it will be an empty stadium and hours later they tell me on the phone, maybe you can go after the first 2 games. Who knows? 

I got my email on Tuesday about wanting more information around 2 pm.  On Wednesday, I got the email about fans not attending at 8 am.  So what changed in 18 hours?  One would think that they would've asked all of the appropriate questions of state and local government agencies about their thoughts and plans for safety.  My best guess is that their submitted plan for safety and sanitization was rejected.  

My rep said something different.  It does sound like this is all seat of the pants, or that the left and right hand don't know what the others are doing.  I also got a call from someone who left a voicemail, but he did call it the Washington Football Team.  Here is what my rep said via email: 

Quote

At this time, we are not having fans in the stadium for 2020. Now, if that changed upon evaluation half way through the season then we would sell tickets as single game tickets. In that scenario, we would have a presale for people who were season ticket members to give them priority. Choosing a refund or credit will not impact your ability to do this. But, a refund would go back to the card used where the credit would be applied to 2021 tickets. If for some reason we did have single game tickets that you bought you cold also use the credit on your account towards those as you mentioned. Please let me know if you have any questions or need anything at all!

Honestly, I took the refund.  At least the Orioles are giving me a 125% credit, so a quarter of my 2022 tickets can have a deposit.  Meanwhile, the WFT isn't even offering us vouchers or reduced parking or anything to stay on.  If my money isn't doing anything for me, I want it back.  

On 8/5/2020 at 10:48 PM, Howie411 said:

To let them keep $2000+ for a whole extra year, they better offer something more then a shirt or a gift card.  I mean come on.

Agreed.  At least the Orioles are offering 125% credit, so it's essentially a quarter of my cost for 2022.  That's a pretty good deal if you view it as a short-term investment.  With the WFT offering nothing, I want it back.  My money needs to be working for me, and if they aren't offering anything close to that deal that the Orioles are offering, I want it back.  

2 hours ago, Howie411 said:

 

That brings up the point that the majority of season ticket holders would have to defer anyways.   They already said limited # of fans.  So how are they going to decide who gets to use their tickets and who doesn't.    With that being said if you do defer them what sort of benefit are they offering.  I'd rather hold only that 2k for another year, then let them have it and collect interest.  Though if they offered some benefit as a STH to keep my money then that is a different story.

The Orioles offered 125% credit.  The word from the NFL earlier was that full refunds would be offered, so I think if you defer payment, that's it.  No credit or anything, but I hope that's not the case, but given the history of NFL tickets compared to other sports, my prediction is nothing.  

I am still undecided.  I need to hear how they are going to distance people and where my seat will be, since I am sure it won't be in my normal seat......which is an aisle seat and I might prefer not to have it right now.  

I run a very popular mall store, at a very busy Maryland mall, and I have to say, on the first day the mall opened, it took them five hours to sanitize anything in the food court.  I couldnt tell you how many people cycled through tables and nothing.  I have no confidence in any stadium being able to keep up with these things that need to happen to make us safe, and if I don't feel like their policies have any teeth as far as being able to eject folks not wearing masks, I won't go.  

8 hours ago, Riggo#44 said:

 

We do need to add someone like a Lafemina to clean up the business side--the conditions at WFT Park are horrid.

Well, Dan just hired a former BFF in Terry Bateman to clean up the culture.  The same culture that he was in when he worked here from 2006-2019, and he learned organizational culture from Snyder Communications so yeah........it's for sure going to get cleaned up /sarcasm

10 hours ago, UK SKINS FAN 74 said:

I want Dan out as much as anyone else. Doesn’t stop Rivera being a good influence that we, as fans, should be encouraged by.

He's ultimately reporting to Snyder.  

I'm also just not a Rivera fan.  Four winning seasons in nine years, sub .500 the past four years.  And not only did we make him head coach, we gave him personnel power as well.  Only Belichick has really done well running both.  The others who normally come up as coach-centric organizations (Seattle and Kansas City) work extremely well together and I would say it's a collaborative effort.  

I want Rivera working with his coaches and players installing the culture on the field, with someone else focused on the front office, and another person focused on the business end.  There are only so many hours in a day, and a lot of work needs to be done.  One person can't do it all. 

EDIT: My browser froze, sorry three posts.  

4 minutes ago, JamesMadisonSkins said:

 

As absolute 100% sense that Bezos makes to buy the team ... it's also not a guarantee.

 

Is Bezos going to make a play for Snyder's 60%? Does he want the whole thing?

 

The FedEx / Fred Smith connection is fascinating. He and Fred Smith CERTAINLY have a business relationship. Amazon has used FedEx for years for shipping. Amazon is also standing up Prime Air to get away from FedEx and has announced a severing of the business relationship in the coming years.

 

Now maybe they both know it's business and are close/friends/amicable. But it's an interesting dynamic. Clearly they know each other, that's for certain. They've done business together for years. So do they link up to buy the team with the 60/40 split, or does Smith see Bezos as a way to cash out and move on?

From the perspective of supply chain, it is much easier for Amazon to have their own shipping and delivering systems than rely on a third party that you can't have control over.  It's the same reason why McDonalds has their own shipping and distribution centers.  There is a lot of potential for disruption when you rely on others to do that job for you.  

4 minutes ago, JamesMadisonSkins said:

 

As absolute 100% sense that Bezos makes to buy the team ... it's also not a guarantee.

 

Is Bezos going to make a play for Snyder's 60%? Does he want the whole thing?

 

The FedEx / Fred Smith connection is fascinating. He and Fred Smith CERTAINLY have a business relationship. Amazon has used FedEx for years for shipping. Amazon is also standing up Prime Air to get away from FedEx and has announced a severing of the business relationship in the coming years.

 

Now maybe they both know it's business and are close/friends/amicable. But it's an interesting dynamic. Clearly they know each other, that's for certain. They've done business together for years. So do they link up to buy the team with the 60/40 split, or does Smith see Bezos as a way to cash out and move on?

From the perspective of supply chain, it is much easier for Amazon to have their own shipping and delivering systems than rely on a third party that you can't have control over.  It's the same reason why McDonalds has their own shipping and distribution centers.  There is a lot of potential for disruption when you rely on others to do that job for you.  

4 minutes ago, bakedtater1 said:

Hey man...I get where you're coming from right..that was me wasnt it?...well I know longer have a defense mechanism.

 

Makes me wonder why wouldn't players on the team say something if they knew **** was going on?..

If the Kapri Bibbs story is true, there you go.  High-paid guys like norman were getting paid, others were participating like Phil Daniels threatening someone, while Bibbs got benched for sleeping with Gruden's side piece, so the low end of the totem poll guys weren't going to say anything.  

2 minutes ago, redskinss said:

if for whatever reason we lose draft picks as a result of this, that'll be infuriating. 

first off nothing about this has been giving the team a competitive advantage, that's pretty obvious, so why should the punishment be something designed to alleviate that scenario. 

and two taking away draft picks punishes fans as much as it does the team and we really dont deserve any more punishment than we've already recieved over the last 25 years.

 

Goodell it's time for you to realize that we the fans deserve some restitution for all that we've been put through and take some action on our behalf for once.

Goodell acts on behalf of owners.  So unless they want Snyder gone, he won't do anything other than slap Snyder on the wrist. 

1 minute ago, ConnSKINS26 said:

 

What do you mean, he left this organization over a year ago

If he was in any way complicit in this, do you think their Board of Directors wants him running their organization anymore?  He was here since 2010 and left in September 2019, so almost a decade here.  

Just now, spjunkies said:

Hate to say it, but this also explains Larry Michael's "retirement". Don't forget he wasn't only the Minister of propaganda and PBP guy, he also had some fancy Vice President title in the organization. He might've been involved with organizing some of these "agreements".

Tony Wyllie's job with the Special Olympics might be done as well. 

If Snyder trots out Rivera to make a statement for him, any chance of me remaining a fan if he remains owner is gone.  Snyder has got to make a live statement when this gets released. 

I want to say that WaPo may even be waiting to give him time to figure this out.  It was supposed to come out Monday, but has really picked up steam this afternoon and evening.  

16 hours ago, klwilkins1977 said:

Dear Moderator,

 What JDR is making is a political statement.  It is hard to discuss his comments, and harder to discuss the affect that his tweets will have on the locker room, without discussing the efficacy of what he said and how his senior locker room/coaching staff position will poison any goodness this team could have...especially when the target is Black men.  This is not an Xs and Os topic. 

 

 

Now my rant and I hope that it doesn't get me banned:  JDR should be jettisoned.  I have been to a lot of funerals and have seen a ton of situations where Black people have died or have been murdered.   I have NEVER  seen any death, especially murders, not be mourned by the entire community.  Whitlock, and JDR by co-signing, is pushing a narrative that is demeaning and will cause issues in that locker room.  

 

Lastly, BLM is not a political issue.  It's  a human rights issue.  Kind of like our now former mascot: we can't tell a Native American when it's OK to be offended.   We can either respond (Snyder finally did... for whatever reason) or you can be like the Braves and say nope.  That IS NOT a political stance... it's  a personhood, humanity stance.

I can't see Rivera jettisoning JDR.  I believe Rivera would give him a chance to find common ground in the locker room.  If it becomes a distraction, I could see both parties wanting to move on, but I don't see Rivera "cancelling" JDR right now.  

Also, with Desean Jackson's comments netting him internal punishment from the Eagles, as well as a commitment to learn more about the people he spoke out against (he's going to visit Auschwitz) I think something similar could happen here.  I'd love to see JDR out with some players in the impoverished areas of the DMV doing community work and helping to spread the love of football around.  

1 hour ago, Shakazullo21 said:

Did everyone see that the Redskins fired Alex Santos Director of Pro Personnel, and Richard Mann Assistant Director of Pro Personnel, and hired Don Warren as the Assistant Director of Pro Personnel?  While the first reaction is this is a legacy hire, but he actually worked for Ron Rivera as a scout for the Panthers for 10 years.  So he is actually a Rivera Panthers hire, who just happens to be a Redskins Legend.

The number of ex-Panthers personnel that have been hired.......from a sub .500 team the past four years, is really worrying to me.  

1 hour ago, neilclarke said:

A full refund better be an option if season is cancelled or played without fans. 
 

If they reduce preseason to 2 games, there will have to be some form of refund/credit anyway. Also curious if season ticket holders can request a full refund due to the name change?  I bought season tickets to see the Redskins, not the Warriors, Redwolves, or Redtails. 

The NFL itself has already said if either of those happen, a full refund will be issued.  

Pre-season is anyone's guess.  Probably a refund but we won't get much since they implemented variable pricing.  

I doubt that they would advertise about the name change, but I am sure that they are getting that question as we speak.  With my family connection to the team and how I feel about it, a new name really feels like we are an expansion team that I have no connection to.  I am going to keep my tickets for this year and hopefully attend games and give it a full season to see how I think about things, but right now I am leaning about 80% to being done with the Redskins after the season.  

13 minutes ago, hail2skins said:

Someone in the Tailgate thread said it might be about forfeited draft picks. Which it might be, but the tweets from Finlay and the ABC7 guy make it sound more ominous

To me, if it's not a big name dropping out due to Covid, it's probably forfeited draft picks due to something they did, or it could be another guy getting fired (or both.). If it's as big as they say, it might be Kyle Smith or Doug Williams. 

25 minutes ago, -JB- said:

I don’t think we have been drafting well for years.  Not even close!

We've been doing better during the Gruden tenure.  Missing a few of those first rounders hurt in 2013 and 2014.  We usually whiff on second rounders, and normally our mid-rounders don't turn out to be starters, but rather depth players.  Ionaidis is the lone exception, and we actually cut him before bringing him back.  

What also hurts is that we end up picking in the middle of the round and not usually having the chance for top-flight talent.  We also spent heavily recently on the defensive line so the talent is not as spread out as one would hope.  Our linebacker and TE corps are arguably the worst units in the league, certainly in the running for top five worst.  The WR corps are a bottom 10 group, as is the secondary.  

I've said this is going to take 2-3 drafts to really turn this team around.  

56 minutes ago, slinky said:

Redskins fire two members of their football personnel department (Santos/Mann)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2020/07/12/redskins-fire-two-members-their-football-personnel-department/

It is odd for a team to release both the leader and assistant Pro Personnel guys.  They are responsible for quite a bit from maintaining player databases of other rostered players, free agents, other leagues, etc, and are a week ahead of the coaching staff as far as looking at video and game preparation.  Training camps are when they kick into high gear, so it is odd to replace both of them right now.  My guess is that they could be the source of the name leaks.  

On 7/10/2020 at 6:07 PM, evmiii said:

I would think a good General Manager would be extremely helpful right about now.

Sadly, Snyder didn't go that route.  He went the coach-centered approach, which has only been successful under Bill Belichick.  

A lot of coach-centered approaches are actually collaborative efforts between a coach and a GM, like what you see in Seattle and Kansas City.  But I wouldn't expect Snyder to notice those subtle differences.  

My hope is that Rivera morphs into the collaborative approach with Kyle Smith.  It would be very close to how Pete Carroll and John Schneider operate in Seattle. but I am still not sure if that happens.  

47 minutes ago, Cooleyfan1993 said:

Has “ANUSTART” been in the thread title the whole week? Or am i just somehow noticing it now?

The former version of this thread was locked by one of the moderators, because it jumped off the rails to discussing the name change.  My guess is that the OP put in ANUSTART to indicate a new thread being started. 

On 7/7/2020 at 11:00 AM, Howie411 said:

So just heard back from my rep.  Supposedly they had an issue where it wasn't sent to anyone on the payment plan.   They said they have fixed  that issue going forward.  

Sounds like some of the usual stuff happening.  I don't know why this team can't have their act together, even with an ever-dwindling STH list. 

On 7/8/2020 at 2:29 PM, Howie411 said:

Interesting news about tickets for the 2020 Raven season.   Wonder how the Redskins will handle this.

 

 

https://www.baltimoreravens.com/news/2020-ravens-season-tickets-to-be-deferred?fbclid=IwAR27GgkNhalhgBtSM5bHNLayt8pGKCX8qgXQOihDk4zhe6ODyXofp0cQUJU

That's interesting that we don't have a response yet, but both the Orioles and Ravens have announced the same thing.  Maybe it's because of Baltimore City requirements and not PG County, although they remain one of the hardest-hit places due to Covid.  The Orioles did announce that if fans could come to games, they will have a way to allow fans to sign up for some games, but none are being promised and a full refund can be issued.  

I have some contacts at the Naval Academy, and things aren't looking good there either.  I am hearing the stadium will be at quarter capacity if there is football, which means 10,000 or so, with only 100 midshipmen at a game.  The mids, barring a family or health emergency, will be confined to the academy grounds and will not be able to leave, and that includes sponsor families.  

I haven't decided on the Orioles yet, because they are offering 125% credit if we don't get a refund, and that puts a nice dent in my 2022 plan, but I would definitely take a refund for my Redskins ticket package.