Washington Redskins jersey sales show that the franchise needs a face

In Virginia, D.C., and Maryland, the Washington Redskins neighborhood, the No. 1 jersey sold wasn’t even a Washington Redskins player. Instead… it was Carson Wentz.

Perhaps the demand for doormats has gone up this winter.

The NFL shop recently revealed the top jerseys sold for all fifty states, and the information was made available by NFL.com’s Dan Hanzus. For the most frequent names, you’ll find the usual suspects. Tom Brady dominates the northeast, Dak Prescott is king in the state of Texas, and Russell Wilson is all the buzz in the Pacific northwest.

As you make your way east from Wilson’s domain, however, you’ll find yourself seeing more and more of a familiar name. Carson Wentz. Wentz’s name occurs often on the map, occupying the states of Montana, North Dakota, Utah, and Kentucky. But that’s not all. Wentz took the crown in the D.C. area as well. Don’t believe me? See for yourself.

At first glance, such a triumph is shocking. Alarming, even. How could the sole nemesis of the Washington Redskins be the top jersey seller in the Redskins’ local area?

Granted, Carson Wentz is a really nice guy. But that’s not enough to cause a passionate fan base to defect and submit to the lulls of emotion.

Yes, Wentz was the top jersey seller in the D.M.V. But such a title is misleading. Washington Redskins fans didn’t hop on the bandwagon and buy Wentz jerseys. The likely truth, and the logical assumption, is that Washington Redskins fans just didn’t buy jerseys at all.

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In a sense, the truth is not so frightening, and it is easy to understand. Who can blame Washington Redskins fans for being hesitant to buy the jersey of their favorite player?

Kendall Fuller was hailed as a valuable piece of the team’s defensive core after a breakout sophomore season. Now he’s off to Kansas City. Kirk Cousins has been the starting quarterback of the Washington Redskins since 2015. He’s put up numbers that would have made any other quarterback a long-term resident with that team. But after a long and complicated contract standoff, he’ll be moving to greener pastures (quite literally) in March.

It is in this way that the Washington Redskins’ jersey sales embody the current state of the team. What other jerseys might a fan buy? Ryan Kerrigan’s trusty No. 91 is always an option, but he’s not flashy, and he’s only getting older. Trent Williams’ No. 71? Equally as reliable. But again, time doesn’t go backwards.

Josh Norman’s No. 24? The ship might be preparing to leave on that one. Montae Nicholson, Jonathan Allen, D.J. Swearinger, and Chris Thompson are all very good younger options. But none of these options are the face of the franchise. None. The Washington Redskins do not have a face.

A franchise without a face is a franchise without direction. Look at the Eagles. Headed by Carson Wentz, they have more Super Bowls in their sights. Tom Brady and the Patriots, looking to eek out as much greatness as they can from their closing window of opportunity. Russell Wilson, and the Seahawks; A playoff titan in the past decade, aiming to keep rest of the NFC West in their place.

What is the Washington Redskins’ direction? What is their goal? To recover? To withstand mediocrity by no more than a hair’s length for another decade? To prolong the inevitable return to the drawing board?

That doesn’t sell.

People like to buy things that have security. People like to invest their money in things that have meaning. Things that will hold meaning over time. The jersey of Robert Griffin III, former savior, holds no meaning anymore. The jersey of Terrelle Pryor, anointed as the next electric wide receiver in Washington, never held any meaning at all. What of the long list of ‘franchise quarterbacks’? Campbell? Shuler? Ramsey?

Perhaps the only Washington Redskins jersey that means something to the fan base in 2018 is Sean Taylor’s, and rightfully so. But in the present day, the Washington Redskins franchise needs a face it can rely on. A representation of what the future might hold. A beacon. Hope. Alex Smith will be here for four years. But it’ll take more than an empty promise to convince fans to shell out their money.

Next: Why the Redskins should avoid drafting a Round 1 DE

Thus, Wentz is the name that descends upon the D.M.V. in the map above. Don’t take it as a massive bandwagon movement. Not for a fanbase that has willfully endured season after season of disappointment for decades. Take it as a hint. The Washington Redskins need a face. They need direction.And they don’t have it yet.