Why the Washington Football Team should not tank in 2020

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Sep 27, 2020; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Cam Newton (1) reacts after running for a first down during the second half against the Las Vegas Raiders at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports /

Free agents go to winners

That argument doesn’t convince you? Okay, here’s another one.

Free agents don’t come to moribund franchises. David Aldridge of The Athletic wrote a piece in defense of Dwayne Haskins recently. In it, he ripped Ron Rivera and the entire WFT franchise. Hard to argue with most of what he said. Ripping the WFT franchise is like having your own personal barrel, along with a lot of fish and a gun with which to shoot them. But one of his arguments was this –

If the team wants to win now, why didn’t they go out and sign Cam Newton or even Tom Brady?

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Excuse me? Cam Newton and Tom Brady were ready to come to D.C.? Championship level QBs were begging their agents to get them a deal with a dysfunctional franchise with an owner who has a lost over 60 percent of his games? Really?

Let me ask Kevin Durant, who some local fans were sure to sign up with his hometown Wizards when he became a free agent, because, well, because we wanted him to. Oh, that’s right. He chose teams that were already championship caliber (Golden State) or trending up (Brooklyn).

That’s what star players do. They go to winners. Not to tankers.

Need more? Try this. It is against the fundamental nature of a professional athlete to not try and win. It’s one of the things that makes them professionals. Maybe you can find an exception or two, but virtually every professional on the field or the ice or the court is trying his or her utmost to win the game.

If they know on some level (and you can be sure, they do know) that the franchise is not doing all it can to help them win, it kills something fundamental in the player, and that infects the franchise itself.

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