Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The Seattle Seahawks defeated the Washington Football Team by a score of 20-15 in Week 15 and are in the playoffs. Here are five takeaways.
The Seattle Seahawks defeated the Washington Football Team by a score of 20-15 and improved to 10-4 on the season while simultaneously clinching a postseason berth. Here are five takeaways from the game.
Washington announced on Friday that they will not be allowing any fans in attendance at either of the final two home games of the year.
No fans for Washington’s final two home games at FedEx Field, the team announces. pic.twitter.com/35YLP3gm4m
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) December 11, 2020
As the crazy year of the COVID-19 pandemic inches to a close, the Washington Football Team is making an announcement that they will not be allowing any fans in attendance at FedEx Field for the final two games of the year, which will be played against the Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers.
Washington started to allow a limited number of fans in Week 9 against the New York Giants, but that stay was short-lived, with the unfortunate numbers from the pandemic continuing to be an issue across our nation. Hopefully, we will be able to get back into FedEx Field next season and have a competitive team led by Ron Rivera to cheer on.
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FedEx Field is among the worst stadiums in the NFL, but Washington is likely to make moves to improve the fan experience in the near future.
It is true that our day-to-day lives have been put on hold for much of the year due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the same can be said of many major business plans, such as moving forward with the potential of a new stadium for the Washington Football Team.
However, the people in charge of the franchise have been talking over the past several months, and it’s becoming clear that there may be some changes in the future for Washington’s amenities, no matter where they may be.
In his weekly blog post, Washington team president Jason Wright dropped an interesting note on Tuesday, saying that there might be some near-term investments made at FedEx Field to improve the fan experience.
The biggest pivot for us is to go from a lens that focuses primarily on our income statement to one that looks at the fan and employee experience. In the long run, a healthier, happier workforce is going to be more productive and creative over time, so it is easily worth making additional HR and talent-related investments to move us in that direction.
Similarly, there may be some substantial near-term investments that will make the fan experience at FedEx Field more enjoyable in the medium term. The in-person guest and fan experience is a major priority for us, and we are in the process of revamping our entire guest experience. And that includes bringing in external sources that have a track record of knowing how to infuse that innovative thinking into our organization.
We don’t know what “near-term investments” refers to, but seeing as FedEx Field consistently ranks as one of the worst stadiums in the entire NFL year in and year out, it’s obviously in need of a lot of improvement. One thing that we might see on the top of the priority list is something that resembles a sportsbook at the stadium; Maryland legalized sports gambling last month in a referendum. While many teams and owners in the NFL look to capitalize on that potential gold rush, it could act as a major infusion to a franchise and stadium that are in need of all the help they can get.
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A torn ACL suffered by Joe Burrow on Sunday is just another instance in a long line of severe leg injuries suffered by QBs at FedEx Field.
Do you believe in curses? I don’t mean curses as in a hex or a spell that someone puts on another person, but rather a curse in the sense of something bad happening, over and over again, in the same spot, to similar people, at coincidental times.
The public is likely split on this. In our world of conspiracy theories and superstition, many people will likely wave off the notion of a curse and explain it as nothing more than coincidence. However, others (me included) look at connected patterns and occurrences and can’t help to dive a bit deeper. All of that leads me to say this:
I think that FedEx Field is cursed for quarterbacks.
I know that this is nothing new, as a simple Google search of ‘FedEx Field Turf’ will send you into an overwhelming rabbit hole of mismanagement and poor upkeep. However, the injury suffered by Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow on Sunday afternoon just adds to the list of promising young quarterbacks who have suffered serious setbacks while playing on the grass in D.C. Here are some notable instances:
A limited number of fans will be allowed to attend Washington’s Week 9 game vs. the New York Giants, according to the team.
#Ravens and #WashingtonFootball Team both announced today fans are on the way to their games. https://t.co/JAa2iZw9bf
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 23, 2020
If you’re a fan of the Washington Football Team and you’ve been dying to visit FedEx Field in person to watch a game this season, you’ve finally gotten your wish.
Washington announced on Friday morning that they will be allowing a limited number of fans at the Week 9 game vs. the New York Giants on November 8th, with safety protocols in place due to COVID-19. Face coverings, mobile ticketing, and social distancing will all be required for any person in attendance.
The number of fans is capped at 10% of the stadium capacity, or 3,000 overall. Tickets will be on sale based on Season Ticket member tenure, starting on October 27th.
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Wright said that it’s too quick to have fans at FedEx Field this weekend vs. Cowboys, but a bye week could help them get prepared.
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It was announced last week that the state of Maryland was going to allow fan attendance at Washington Football Team and Baltimore Ravens games, with a cap at 10% of the stadium capacity.
Initially, there were reports that Washington was not planning to allow fans at the games, but they may be changing course now. In an interview with WJLA on Tuesday, Washington team president Jason Wright said that there could be fans at the November 8th game against the New York Giants, but not sooner than that.
“We have the bye week coming up after this,” Wright said. “It gives us plenty of time to be prepared to do something substantial in the coming week. We have a plan to bring back fans. If you want to pencil something on the calendar, I would look at the Giants week. That gives us the right time to prepare.”
After the performance against the Giants this past weekend, it’s fair to wonder how many fans would choose to visit FedEx Field in order to watch the team in person if they were given the green light, but at the very least, it’s good to see that Washington is working towards that direction.
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It was announced on Friday that Washington could have 10% capacity for fans at Fed Ex Field, but a report shows their unlikely to lift ban.
The Washington Football Team is “evaluating” the possibility of allowing a limited number of fans at FedEx Field in the wake of Gov. Larry Hogan’s new order, but it is unlikely to lift its ban at this point, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) October 16, 2020
News broke on Friday afternoon that the Maryland Governor had lifted the ban on fans at professional sports venues in Maryland, granting both the Washington Football Team and Baltimore Ravens the opportunity to allow fans back into the stands, as long as it stays below 10% of the stadium’s capacity.
After the news was released, the Ravens said that they would be evaluating the situation going forward.
Now it is being reported by The Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala that Washington is evaluating the situation as well, but they are reportedly unlikely to lift the ban on fans at his point.
Washington plays on the road in New York this weekend, so the team will have a bit more time to decide what they are going to do going forward before any decision is put into effect.
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The Governor of Maryland said on Friday that they are taking steps to allow fans to be in attendance at Washington and Baltimore games.
With our key health metrics low and stable, we are taking steps to allow more spectators, including @Ravens and @WashingtonNFL fans, to safely attend games in the stands. Outdoor sporting venues will be limited to 10% of total capacity.
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) October 16, 2020
The Governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan, announced on Friday that the state was taking steps to allow sporting events to safely allow fans back in the stands to watch games, which would mean that there is a path forward for both the Washington Football Team and Baltimore Ravens to start filling the seats on Sundays.
As of now, neither Washington nor the Ravens have allowed fans yet, outside of family members for players and coaches.
Governor Hogan said that fan attendance would be limited at 10% of the stadium’s capacity.
We pondered earlier this week what it would take for Washington to start opening up FedEx Field to outside fans, and with Maryland being on the lower end of the spectrum when it comes to risk of COVID-cases, with just 67-per-10,000, it seems reasonable to expect that we might see the ticket booths open up sooner rather than later.
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Washington will reportedly allow family members of players, coaches, and employees to attend the game vs. Los Angeles this weekend.
Washington Football Team to allow some players, coaches and team employees' family members to the stadium this week. I'm happy for the rookies, there families had to go to Cleveland to see their sons play pic.twitter.com/Whe0Qc6DdA
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 8, 2020
While the majority of fans will still not be permitted to watch the Washington Football Team to FedEx Field this season to watch the team play in person, some restrictions are being lifted, and family members for team players, coaches, and employees will be allowed at the stadium this week when the Los Angeles Rams come to town.
The report comes from NBC Sports Washington’s JP Finlay, who says that everyone entering the stadium will be required to wear a mask and follow all safety guidelines that have been put into place through coordination with the CDC.
For many, especially rookies, this will be the first time that they get to see the players in person play in the NFL, though some families traveled to Cleveland to watch Washington take on the Browns earlier this season.
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Washington will have a practice in shells at FedEx Field Thursday, which will be Ron Rivera’s first practice in the stadium as head coach.
The Washington Football Team will practice at FedExField on Thursday in shells.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) August 25, 2020
For the first time in Ron Rivera’s tenure in Washington, he will be hosting practice at FedEx Field on Thursday, with players expected to be in shells, rather than full pads.
After three straight days of fully-padded practices over the weekend, the team eased back on Tuesday and played in shells, though hitting was still abundant. The team will reportedly be off on Wednesday, and then they will reconvene on Thursday to get a feeling for playing in their home stadium once again.
For Rivera, who has coached against Washington a number of times in his time with the Carolina Panthers, this is expected to be a meaningful step as he gets the chance to see his players on his new home turf. For the players, stepping onto the field will likely get the juices flowing quite a bit, and you can expect energy to be high.
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