As reported earlier by our own Bryan Manning, the Commanders have released kicker Brandon McManus.
Consequently, the Commanders are going to this week’s Organized Team Activities (OTA) without a kicker on their roster.
When the Commanders signed McManus to a one-year deal, some of us thought, well, it was only a one-year deal because he did miss seven field goal attempts in 2023 for the Jaguars.
McManus was successful on 30-of-37 field goal attempts, but when looking a bit closer, one notices that the now-former Commanders kicker missed five of his attempts from 50 yards or more.
Yet, there is the reality that if five of his seven misses were from 50 yards or more, then why did the Jaguars not re-sign McManus?
Enter the story that broke last week when he was accused of sexual assault having transpired on a team flight to London in September 2023.
The Commanders were placed in a very unenviable position. Some in the fan base will no doubt want him severed from the team immediately. Their reasoning is that the franchise was a laughing stock that got so many things wrong for so many years. Those will point out that the new ownership needs to see this as an opportunity to proclaim it has not been business as usual in the past decades and this team is going to clean up its image.
Others in the fan base will be very upset that the Commanders have, in their view, prematurely released McManus prior to his day in court. They will say this new ownership group needs to show more class than the previous leadership of Daniel Snyder and Bruce Allen. They will criticize the Harris Ownership Group for not standing by one of their players who may have been unfairly accused.
Whatever position you take on the McManus issue, one thing is certain: the honeymoon is over for the Harris Ownership Group. They have made several moves this offseason, firing former coaches and not re-signing several in their personnel departments.
And they have been challenged to do something about the terrible brand (Commanders) they inherited…