Pathetic crowds at home opener

[ggarriso]

Tarp up the entire upper bowl, reduce pricing for the lower to current upper prices and relocate anyone who is interested into the lower.  Drop concession pricing for all STH via the Falcons model, implement a massive fan outreach program and give tons of tickets away via local radio etc.. Eh, who am I kidding, the fella above is right, no one cares anymore

 

 

[Stadium-Armory]

People like to say "Dan is a fan". If he were really a fan of the team he would sell it. He's smart enough to know that he isn't good at producing a winning organization. A real fan would sell to someone who could restore the franchise. This guy is not a fan of anything but him self.

[hail2skins]

WaPo on Maryland's Oxon Hill efforts:

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins/maryland-gov-larry-hogan-wants-a-land-swap-to-keep-redskins-in-pg-county/2018/12/11/3ae63fc0-fd4c-11e8-862a-b6a6f3ce8199_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.0e7a772bf3af

 

Last part of the article:

 

FedEx Field, which opened in 1997, has never matched that atmosphere.

Now 21 years old, which places it among the older third of the NFL’s 31 venues, it has aged poorly. The team’s losing record under Snyder’s 19-year ownership has not enhanced fans’ enchantment.

Snyder, along with his then-partners Mort Zuckerman and Fred Drasner, acquired FedEx Field and the team from the estate of the late Jack Kent Cooke for roughly $800 million in 1999.

Snyder spent millions in the past 19 years trying to get the building “right,” in his view — expanding it to 91,000 for maximum profit; more recently, downsizing it at least three times to convey an image of capacity crowds when ticket demand had dried up.

He now resents the venue and is increasingly frustrated that his rival NFL owners have more high-tech stadiums than his, which consistently ranks at the bottom of surveys of game-day experience.

His timetable for building a new stadium, once a site is secured, is tied to the 2027 expiration of the team’s lease for use of the land on which FedEx sits.

This season REALLY conveyed an image of a packed stadium, right??

 

[hail2skins]

Updated article on how the Skins and Mayor Bowser will have to work with the Democratic-controlled House on the RFK site stuff:

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins/federal-budget-fight-slows-redskins-path-to-build-new-stadium-at-rfk-site/2018/12/21/28d708c4-056b-11e9-9122-82e98f91ee6f_story.html?utm_term=.b7bc538ea589

 

Piece at end of article on how the Skins couls potentially play at Fed Ex beyond the 2026 season:

 

Contrary to that widely held perception, the Redskins’ tenure at FedEx Field is not a “ticking time bomb” at all. After reviewing the two contractual documents associated with John Kent Cooke’s 1996 purchase of the land on which the stadium sits — the three-page deed and a 19-page declaration of covenants, conditions, restrictions and easements — Prince George’s County officials concluded that the team will not be forced out in 2027, as is widely believed, and can continue playing there as long as it likes.

The documents, which are public record, were shared with The Post this week. They reveal that Cooke bought the 188.2-acre parcel, then known as the Wilson Farm Stadium Property, from the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission for $4.135 million via his Delaware corporation, JKC Stadium Inc., to build an NFL stadium with about 78,600 seats and parking lots with approximately 20,000 spaces.

Snyder acquired both the stadium and the land as part of his roughly $800 million purchase of the Redskins from trustees of Jack Kent Cooke’s estate in 1999.

The covenant applied to any subsequent owner of the team and requires the Redskins to play all their home games at the stadium built on the land until whichever date falls later: Aug. 31, 2027, or the day before the 30th anniversary of the first home game played there. That works out to Sept. 13, 2027 (The Redskins played their first two games of the 1997 season on the road).

Explained John Erzen II, deputy chief of staff and spokesman for Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, who retrieved the land records at The Post’s request and conferred with the county’s office of law on its requirements: “It is our position that once they have fulfilled the covenant, which would require them to play through the latter of the two dates, there is nothing more that they have to do. They can leave at that point, but they can also stay. Leave, stay — the choice is theirs.”

Redskins President Bruce Allen shed no light on the matter when asked this week, via email, if the Redskins shared the understanding that they were obligated to play at FedEx until Sept. 13, 2027, and that nothing precludes them from continuing to play at FedEx after that date.

“These are questions for a later time,” Allen replied via team spokesman Tony Wyllie.

 

[Timmy_Smith]

Don’t think I’ll be renewing next year. Four seats in section 101 up for grabs (prepare to stand all game and be perpetually disappointed). No more. I’m out. 

[BRAVEONTHEWARPATH93]

Might as well just decorate the field like the Linc on Sunday cuz it’s gonna be all Iggles fans 

[Csup]

1 hour ago, Timmy_Smith said:

Don’t think I’ll be renewing next year. Four seats in section 101 up for grabs (prepare to stand all game and be perpetually disappointed). No more. I’m out. 

You’ve made a wise decision, my friend.  Don’t give Synder your money.  Gave up my season tix 10 years ago and was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

[Renegade7]

Ah, at least I know Snyder hates the stadium, too, now.  Starting to worry there for a second.

 

I'll be at the Eagles game to see my team, stop by tailgate, i don't know the next time I'll see any of them in person.  Third game this year, i won't go next year if they try to intentionally be uncompetitive for 2019.

[max21]

I’ll be there with 6 friends. Gunna scream my head off, also going to the Caps game the next day. I might be the biggest DC sports fan ever swear to god 

[Cooleyfan1993]

i'll be at the game next weekend. sitting in a suite with my dad. going to be a blowout, but at least i'll get to watch the team play. won't get to watch them play again until august, so any chance I can get, i'll take it  

[hail2skins]

This will be the first time since 2003 that we've played the Eagles at home in the last game of the season. We also played them at home in 1997, the stadium's first season.  I remember being in one of the top three rows of the place (back when the stadium had 29 rows in the upper deck the whole way around) watching the Skins beat the Eagles 35-32 helped by two defensive TDs from Darryl Pounds and Darrell Green. The Redskins had faint playoff hopes going into the day but needed help and were knocked out when the Lions beat the Jets or something along those lines. I couldn't have imagined the ****show this organization would be over the next 20+ years. 

[Csup]

1 hour ago, Cooleyfan1993 said:

i'll be at the game next weekend. sitting in a suite with my dad. going to be a blowout, but at least i'll get to watch the team play. won't get to watch them play again until august, so any chance I can get, i'll take it  

Free alcohol?  😉

[Cooleyfan1993]

11 minutes ago, Csup said:

Free alcohol?  😉

I hope! After all, what else would one need at a redskins game 😂😂 

[hail2skins]

ESPN is listing the time of the Skins-Eagles game as 425 pm. 

[hail2skins]

So the Eagles fans gave FedEx its second largest crowd of the season, at 63188. It actually looked almost as full as the Dallas game on TV. So to wrap it, this was the attendance by game, with the Redskins record heading into the game:

 

Colts 57013 (1-0)

Packers 59827 (1-1)

Panthers 60482 (2-2)

Cowboys 66300 (3-2)

Falcons 62386 (5-2)

Texans 61500 (6-3)

Giants 57437 (6-6)

Eagles 63188 (7-8)

 

After the Lafemina firing, I saw a comment on Twitter from a fan who said this wasn't the worst season record-wise since we moved to FedEx, but it was the worst season experience-wise at the stadium. I would tend to agree. The longtime mediocre product, the way the Kirk situation was handled (which people will probably now argue was good, given how Minnesota folded today), and Lafemina's policies of cutting out sales to brokers contributed to the crap show in the club and upper levels this season.

 

What happens next?  With Lafemina out, I'm going to assume that the floodgates of tickets to brokers reopens, but who knows.  I think if the Skins want to make the appearance of a fuller stadium, removal of additional seats from the upper deck, tarping over more sections in the club level, and lowering of STH prices should be considered.  But lower prices on the secondary markets might do it too.  Anything to make next season better at Landover. 

[Burgold]

I didn't watch most of the game which is a first for me, but the bits I did sounded like it was an Eagle's home game. Very sad. Not surprising or unreasonable, but really sad.

[Commander PK]

...so I went today because I was provided 4 free Club Level seats from my brother and a parking pass.  

 

I was expecting it to be bad from a numbers standpoint...anyone in their right mind would have...but I can honestly say I have never seen a game at Fed Ex like that one.  It was 80% Eagles fans if there was one.  My friends and I were honestly asking did they bus them down for the game?  All you could do was sit back and laugh.  The Eagles had a home game in Landover today.  I couldn’t even muster the energy to be bothered.  I only went myself because it was free.

 

I think about the kind of fan I used to be in comparison to the place I find I myself now and it’s pretty sad.  Why am I still here?  Why do I still post on occasion?  I guess because I hope for the future.  I hope that one day this ship gets turned in the right direction.    

[hail2skins]

16 minutes ago, Painkiller said:

I was expecting it to be bad from a numbers standpoint...anyone in their right mind would have...but I can honestly say I have never seen a game at Fed Ex like that one.  It was 80% Eagles fans if there was one.  My friends and I were honestly asking did they bus them down for the game?  All you could do was sit back and laugh.  The Eagles had a home game in Landover today.  I couldn’t even muster the energy to be bothered.  I only went myself because it was free.

I remember going to the game at the Linc in '05 when the Skins beat an 6-9 Eagles team ravaged by injury on the offensive side to make the playoffs. Granted, the Eagles had just made the Super Bowl the previous season (which rightfully should've bummed their fans out more at what happened in '05, to be honest). And there were a fair number of Skins fans in Philly that day, but we certainly did not even come close to taking over the Linc like Philly's fans did today. 

[Commander PK]

9 minutes ago, hail2skins said:

I remember going to the game at the Linc in '05 when the Skins beat an 6-9 Eagles team ravaged by injury on the offensive side to make the playoffs. Granted, the Eagles had just made the Super Bowl the previous season (which rightfully should've bummed their fans out more at what happened in '05, to be honest). And there were a fair number of Skins fans in Philly that day, but we certainly did not even come close to taking over the Linc like Philly's fans did today. 

I honestly wonder if there was a worse attended home game in the history of the NFL than there was today at Fed Ex.  I bet in the worst seasons of the Lions and Browns they still never had a late season home game like this one.   I wish I could say I’m exaggerating even a little bit but I’m not.  The place was overrun.  In my general area alone, 313 and 314, I think there was 5 or 6 Skins fans out of approximately 35 people.  

 

Edit: Honestly, outside of my group of 4 Skins fans, I literally saw 2 or maybe 3 more.  The rest of the seats were empty or had an Eagle fan sitting in them (or standing in front of them). They were loud and obnoxious the whole time.  They knew they had the numbers and behaved accordingly.  Like I said, nothing much to do but grin and bear it.  

[Renegade7]

New low. Be damned to blame fans for this one.

[Mr. Sinister]

From the crowd shots you wouldn't even think it was FedEx until they showed the field. That's how bad it looked from the tv

[Commander PK]

1 minute ago, Mr. Sinister said:

From the crowd shots you wouldn't even think it was FedEx until they showed the field. That's how bad it loomed from the tv

 

Yeah it was that bad.

 

When the Eagles scored their first touchdown the place erupted like we were in Philadelphia and they just locked up the Lombardi at home.  The experience was surreal.  

[Renegade7]

42 minutes ago, Mr. Sinister said:

From the crowd shots you wouldn't even think it was FedEx until they showed the field. That's how bad it looked from the tv

 

37 minutes ago, Painkiller said:

 

Yeah it was that bad.

 

When the Eagles scored their first touchdown the place erupted like we were in Philadelphia and they just locked up the Lombardi at home.  The experience was surreal.  

 

Yep, it really did feel like a road game with the redskins logo in the middle if the field for no reason.  Our offense on important third downs had to deal with damn near the entire stadium against them it got that loud.

 

 I've never seen anything like that here, the icing was like has been noted how hard it was to find other redskins fans, especially once the game was over.  I will never forget it, day that will forever live in infamy.

[desertbeagle85]

5 hours ago, Burgold said:

I didn't watch most of the game which is a first for me, but the bits I did sounded like it was an Eagle's home game. Very sad. Not surprising or unreasonable, but really sad.

 

Agreed and I'm going to on have to say Ive watched less and less of the Redskins the last 2 years. We all have one life and fans of all teams look forward to watching there favorite team on Sunday.

 

Problem is one man has ruined my experience year after year for pretty much my whole life.  Snyder is a horrible owner and the fans are done with this product. Nothing will change next year if anything it gets worse. Snyder will blow it up again and fire everyone again nothing will change.

 

Either that man sells this team or he dies. When one of those 2 things happen is when change will happen. So everyone is clear I don't want the man to die, but I do want him to sell this team. If he was really a true fan he'd realize he's the problem not the solution, but he's not he's a businessman.

 

So please everyone keep it up and don't show up for these games. Only way to hit this man is his wallet. 

 

I've never been happier with this fan base. Not showing up and saying this team has to change is huge. Most fans don't have the stones to do this even though it is needed. Great job this year guys. 

[RFK Lives]

I remember watching as the Raiders and jaguars had to start tarping over seats to mask a disinterested fanbase and despite our *ahem* struggles, never, ever thought that would become the Redskins but here we are. 

The Jags at least are coming off an AFC Championship appearance and the Raiders are moving to a city that will fit their image and has a plan.  We however, are a rudderless ship.  No plan, no hope. 

The only thing I can say, at least the field looked in a good shape yesterday.  I cannot remember it looking in such good shape this late in the season for a long time.  That's how bad this has become, I am texting with my buds about field condition.