Commanders Rebrand Brings Back Redskins Spear And Uniform But Falls Short Without Chief Or Nickname

The Washington Redskins have been dancing uncomfortably around abandoning their nickname and traditions in 2020, and they've never gotten the issue quite right. So, it's no surprise that the latest attempt to fix the matter, which was unveiled on Wednesday, took steps in the right direction but still missed the mark.

The Commanders, as they're known today, have gone through a number of rebranding efforts to escape their "Redskins" history. 

A Washington Redskins helmet on the sidelines during the first half of a game between the Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

First we had the Washington Football Team, serving as an awkward appellation lacking a nickname after a hasty retreat from the longtime Redskins nickname.

A W logo replacing the iconic Chief on the helmet.

Uniforms changing — for the worse.

Political correctness. Polls suggesting both support and disdain for political correctness. Actual Native American tribes speaking in favor of and against the old nickname. And fans hating the whole process.

So on Wednesday, the once storied franchise was at it again. 

Hail The Spear!

The latest rebrand is changing the uniforms back to the 1980s-2000s era uniforms the club wore when Joe Gibbs coached the Counter Trey, John Riggins ran over Don McNeal, and the club won three Super Bowls.

And as an alternate black uniform, the club added the familiar spear evoking the one on the club's helmets in the 1960s — a super cool logo worn by the likes of Sonny Jurgensen and other franchise greats. 

So… Hail!

Sort of.

The spear is only a part-time alternate logo. The main logo remains the ridiculous W that took someone three seconds to think up in 2020 and no one thinks is cool.

And this rebrand, while taking a couple of steps toward the team's bygone glory, falls short because the chief, the nickname, the fight song and the R on jackets were left only to memory.

"I'm sure there will be some that are always looking for a full reversal," team president Mark Clouse told ESPN, "and that's not the path we're on, but I think this is a great way to continue to celebrate that.

"We've been very purposeful in trying to bring back the celebration and integration of our heritage while continuing to move forward to build the Commander brand. It's extremely important that the elements of those things are brought together."

Washington Commanders president Mark Clouse. (Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)

Commanders Say They Carry Spears

Yeah, um, Super Bowl winning Redskins and mediocre Commanders are elements that sync seamlessly like a thoroughbred and a yak.

But Clouse, on behalf of owner Josh Harris, is doing his best to sell the idea that the club is tipping its cap to the Redskins with the spear — he even uses the term thought to be politically incorrect by some — with some sort of weird idea that Commanders carry spears, so both are kind of the similar.

"Obviously, no secret, right, that the spear has found its way back into certain elements that we've been doing," Clouse told 106.7 The Fan.  "But where it started from was really in the same idea of how do we look back at the heritage of the team and think about things from our past that could also be relevant in today. 

"And the spear became a really obvious opportunity, because, one, it's instantly recognizable from the past of the Redskins. People know that icon, they recognize it. But it also can live in the commander's environment we've been building, which is kind of this combination of the movie 300 and Game of Thrones and a little bit of Roman and Greco in there, and the spear lives in that world as well. 

"And so it became what we felt was a great device that kind of connects these two generations together, you know, make it relevant to what we're doing today, but also a clear dive to the past."

Commanders Take A Half Measure

You know what this is? A half measure.

It’s the Washington Commanders recognizing their past is better than their present and taking a safe step to energize fans by evoking it.

It's just not very Washington Redskins.