Tag: Sean Taylor

Eagles assistant tells story of time Sean Taylor took care of bully

A current Eagles coach and former teammate of Sean Taylor tells a story of a time Taylor took care of Kellen Winslow Jr.

Clint Hurtt is in his first season as the Philadelphia Eagles defensive line coach. The 46-year-old Hurtt spent the previous seven seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, including the final two as defensive coordinator. But before Hurtt turned to coaching, he played for the Miami Hurricanes and was a teammate of the late, great Sean Taylor.

On Wednesday, during media rounds, Kevin Clark of ESPN asked Hurtt for a Sean Taylor story that spoke to how much a “bad—” the legendary safety was.

Hurtt didn’t hesitate.

“OK, we had a spring practice, I wanna say that spring practice was in 2004, and so Kellen Winslow (Jr.) ran over a young linebacker we had on the roster,” Hurtt said. “Might have been a freshman, you know, so it kind of felt like he was getting picked on a little bit. Sean was not in on the play, but he was pissed off, so he put his helmet back on, he was not supposed to be out there. And instead of running the defensive call, he went out there, his whole thing was to put a target on Kellen Winslow, so he can blow his helmet off. And he did exactly that. So, that’s probably the most bad— moment.”

It’s always good to hear a Sean Taylor story. Taylor, of course, spent his four NFL seasons with the Washington Redskins before he was tragically killed in a home invasion in November 2007 defending his family. Washington retired Taylor’s No. 21 jersey, and the franchise continues to honor his legacy.

While Hurtt’s timeline may have been a bit off — Taylor and Winslow were NFL rookies in 2004 — it was another classic Taylor story. What’s most interesting is that it was Winslow and Taylor that Joe Gibbs was deciding between with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2004 NFL draft. Gibbs clearly made the right choice.

As for Winslow, he’s currently serving a 14-year prison sentence for rape and assault.

 

Josh Harris: Commanders’ name is here to stay

Josh Harris shot down the talk of another name change.

On Monday, Washington Commanders’ managing partner Josh Harris made it abundantly clear that the Commanders’ name will not be changing.

In his season-ending press conference, Harris addressed the 2024 season, thanking GM Adam Peters and his staff, head coach Dan Quinn and his staff, the players, the fans, and the DMV region. He also discussed the future, such as where the potential new stadium could be, and answered questions about another potential rebranding.

The first question posed to Harris was about rebranding.

“Right now in this building, the name Commanders means something,” Harris said, making it clear the focus was not currently on rebranding.

Later, Harris was asked if it was safe to say the Commanders name was here to stay.

“Yes, and we’re actually, I think it’s now being embraced by our team, by our culture, by our coaching staff, and so…..we’re going with that,” he said.

This should shut down the talk of another potential name change in the near future. There have been reports that Washington was considering tweaking the uniforms, perhaps as early as the 2025 season, but Harris did not address that possibility.

Harris did say the team would continue to embrace its past, which we’ve seen on the team’s website, which has included the Redskins’ logo on Sean Taylor’s merchandise.

WATCH: Where were Quinn, Daniels and Kingsbury when Washington last won a playoff game?

A look at where Dan Quinn, Jayden Daniels and Kliff Kingsbury were the last time Washington won a playoff game.

A lot has changed in 19 years.

The Washington Commanders enter Sunday night’s NFC playoff matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, hoping to win its first playoff game in 19 years.

It was 19 years ago that Washington, then the Redskins, defeated the Buccaneers 17-10 in an NFC wild-card game at Raymond James Stadium — the site of Sunday’s game. Washington won that game despite finishing with only 120 yards of total offense. Quarterback Mark Brunell was seven of 15 with 41 yards and an interception that day.

A defensive touchdown by the late, great Sean Taylor proved the difference in the game.

On the sideline that day for Washington was Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs.

The Commanders were the NFL’s best story in the 2024 season. Washington went 4-13 in 2023 before hiring a new front office, coaching staff, and improving to 12-5. It was the most wins in a regular season for the franchise since 1991, Gibbs’ first tenure on Washington’s sideline — and the team’s last Super Bowl win.

Several key figures were involved in Washington’s turnaround, including general manager Adam Peters. In 2005, Peters was finishing his third season as an NFL scout for the New England Patriots.

Where were some of the other key figures in 2005?

First, there’s head coach Dan Quinn. In the 2005 season, Quinn was the defensive line coach for the Miami Dolphins. It was Quinn’s second full-time NFL job.

Next, there’s offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. Kingsbury led an impressive turnaround for Washington’s offense in 2024. Nineteen years ago, Kingsbury was a 26-year-old backup quarterback for the New York Jets.

Finally, there’s sensational rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. When Washington won its last playoff game, Daniels was a five-year-old kindergarten student.

The NFL Network put together a video of where Quinn, Kingsbury and Daniels were during Washington’s last playoff win.

The Bucs and Commanders have met three times in the playoffs. Tampa Bay holds a 2-1 edge. Interestingly, Washington’s last playoff game came four years ago with Taylor Heinicke under center against Tom Brady and the eventual Super Bowl champions.

Commanders and Bucs have plenty of NFC playoff history

Washington and Tampa Bay have an interesting playoff history.

Though the Commanders have only appeared in the playoffs six times in the last quarter century, they have faced the Tampa Bay Bucs half of those times.

Yes, in the last 25 seasons, the Washington NFL franchise known as the Redskins, Football Team, and now Commanders failed to qualify for the NFC playoffs for 18 seasons.

Here are the three times in the last 25 years Washington made the playoffs and then faced the Tampa Bay Bucs in the playoffs.

  • In 1999, Norv Turner coached the Redskins to the NFC East title with a 10-6 record. Washington defeated the Detroit Lions 27-13 in Landover, then traveled to Tampa to face the Bucs. Brian Mitchell returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. Washington would lead 13-0 before the Bucs scored two touchdowns, taking a 14-13 lead. In the last minutes, Washington gained two first downs and, on fourth & 3 from the 33, set up to kick a 50-yard field goal. However, a bad snap by Dan Turk forced Brad Johnson to attempt a pass, which fell incomplete.
  • In 2005, Joe Gibbs’ team finished 10-6, winning their last five regular season games. The first-round game was again played in Tampa, FL. LB LaVar Arrington intercepted a Chris Simms pass in the first quarter, returning the ball inside the Bucs’ 10. Clinton Portis scored on a six-yard touchdown. Still, in the first quarter, Sean Taylor picked up a fumble and ran 51 yards for a touchdown for a 14-0 lead. The Washington offense could only generate 120 yards all day. However, the defense kept Tampa Bay to 243 yards and won the turnover battle 3-1, as Washington held on to win 17-10.
  • The 2020 season was bizarre. Washington somehow won the NFC East, though they only achieved a 7-9 regular season record. The Bucs (11-5 wild card) came to Landover. Washington fell behind early, 9-0 and 18-7. Taylor Heinicke pulled off his spectacular diving touchdown run diving out to touch the pylon for an 8-yard touchdown, reducing the deficit to 18-16. But Tom Brady led the Bucs to a 31-23 win.

Can the Commanders even the score against the Bucs on Sunday?

19 years ago: A look back at Washington’s last playoff win

We look back at the franchise’s last playoff win, featuring Sean Taylor and Joe Gibbs.

Monday marked the 19th anniversary of when this franchise, now known as the Washington Commanders, won an NFL playoff game.

That’s right, it was January 7, 2006, the first round of the 2005 season NFC playoffs. They were the “Redskins” then, and traveling to Tampa, Florida, they defeated the Bucs 17-10 to advance to a second-round matchup in Seattle, where their season ended in a 20-10 loss.

Here are highlights from this last playoff win

With Joe Gibbs (2.0) in his second season, the team had not been in the playoffs since 1999; no fan would ever imagine (not even Gibbs himself) that the team would go 19 years without winning another playoff game.

The Redskins were 5-6 heading into December, where coach Joe pulled off his magic like he so often had been prone to accomplish. The man could organize and lead like few others (who else do you know that has led an NFL team to championships and a NASCAR team to championships?).

Washington won their last five games of the season, defeating the Rams (24-9), the Cardinals (17-13), the Cowboys (35-7), the Giants on Christmas Eve (35-20), and the Eagles on New Year’s Day (31-20).

Mark Brunell was an aging 35-year-old veteran, and Patrick Ramsey was his backup. Three times that season, Brunell led the Redskins back on game-winning drives late to pull out close wins.

Clinton Portis rushed for 1,516 yards for the second-highest rushing season in franchise history! He ran for 11 rushing touchdowns, averaging 4.3 a carry and 94.8 a game.

Santana Moss collected nine touchdown receptions and 1,483 receiving yards on 84 receptions, averaging an impressive 17.7 yards per reception. Tight end Chris Cooley had a huge season with 71 receptions, averaging 10.9 reception and 7 receiving touchdowns.

Ladell Betts and Antonio Brown (not THAT Antonio Brown) both returned a kickoff that season for a touchdown. Kicker John Hall made every point after touchdown and missed only two field goal attempts.

Defensive end Phillip Daniels led the team with 8.0 quarterback sacks, with LB Marcus Washington also contributing 7.5. Linebacker Lamar Marshall led the team with 101 tackles, and Washington was second with 94. Marshall also led the Redskins with four interceptions, including the only “pick six,” and Ryan Clark added three.  Sean Taylor led the team with 12 passes defended.

Gregg Williams and Don Breaux were the defensive and offensive coordinators, respectively. Joe Bugel (OL coach) and Greg Blache (DL coach) were on the coaching staff, and the Executive VP of Player Personnel was Vinny Cerrato.

Nineteen years was indeed a long time ago.

Sean Taylor’s younger brother headed to the NFL draft

Sean Taylor’s brother, Gabe, is headed to the NFL draft.

Twenty-one years after his older brother was drafted No. 5 overall in the 2024 NFL draft, Gabe Taylor is entering the draft.

Gabe Taylor, of course, is the younger brother of Washington Redskins legendary safety Sean Taylor. Sean Taylor played four seasons for Washington, becoming one of the NFL’s best safeties before he was tragically murdered in November 2007.

Washington retired Taylor’s No. 21 jersey in 2021.

Gabe Taylor played five seasons as a safety at Rice University, appearing in 54 games with 238 tackles, including 10 for loss, four sacks, 10 interceptions and 27 passes defensed.

Taylor is 5-foot-10 and 193 pounds. Like his older brother, Gabe Taylor played at Gulliver Prep in the Miami area.

During his college career, Gabe honored Sean by wearing his older brother’s No. 26 college number. Sean Taylor wore No. 26 at Miami. In one of the more heartwarming college football moments in recent years, Taylor had an interception on the 14th anniversary of his brother’s death.

Good luck to Gabe Taylor as he looks to follow in his brother’s footsteps.

Jayden Daniels, Dan Quinn remember Sean Taylor

Dan Quinn, Jayden Daniels remember Sean Taylor on the 17th anniversary of his passing.

Nov. 27, 2007, is one of the darkest days in the history of the Washington NFL franchise. That’s the day legendary former Redskins safety Sean Taylor died after being shot in his home protecting his family.

While faces and names have changed over the years, the team has always honored Taylor. Recently, the Commanders teamed up with his daughter to create the Sean Taylor Legacy Project.

Regardless of who coaches or plays for the now-Commanders, Taylor’s name is always mentioned around the anniversary of his tragic passing.

On Wednesday, it marked 17 years since Taylor’s tragic death. Washington head coach Dan Quinn remembered Taylor:

“I’m really glad that you brought that up, and I did,” Quinn said about watching Taylor play. “[I] was not aware of 17 years for that. A presence, I think, is one of the first things that you think about even from entering into, like what a defender can be and look like and  the impact that a ball player can make on a team, and the energy that they can provide. And so, that’s the first thing, kind of gives me chills just on my arms right now thinking about what presence can mean to a team and to a group. And Sean had that in abundance.”

When Taylor died, Quinn was in his first year as the New York Jets defensive line coach.

Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels was also asked about his memories of Taylor.

‘I mean, I watched Sean Taylor, I used to watch his highlights, so I know, one of my close friends, Jordan Clark, his dad, obviously [Former Washington S] Ryan Clark, they played together here,” Daniels said.

“So, he had a huge impact on Jordan, but just overall in the football world, just who he was and as a human being and the impact that he made on the field, obviously his electrified playing, hits, and making plays on the ball. So, I mean, it’s awesome just to have his remembrance here and try to keep that going.”

Ryan Clark also remembered Taylor this week.

The Commanders retired Taylor’s No. 21 jersey two years ago and remembered him on social media Wednesday.

Commanders remove Sean Taylor memorial and will replace with a new statue

Josh Harris continues to do all the right things.

The Washington Commanders retired legendary safety Sean Taylor’s jersey during the 2021 season. The team later revealed a new statue honoring Taylor would be built at the team’s home stadium, the former FedEx Field.

One year later, the Commanders revealed the “statue.” It did not go over well with Washington’s fans.

A lot has changed since the Commanders revealed the Taylor Memorial in November 2022. Most importantly, Washington has a new owner, Josh Harris. Now, Harris and his partners are righting a wrong. The Commanders recently removed the two-year-old memorial, and Taylor’s daughter, Jackie, revealed that the team was building a statue to honor her father.

This time, it will be an actual statue.

Here’s Jackie Taylor:

Kudos to Harris. This is the right move.

Taylor was a fourth-year safety for Washington when he was shot during an attempted robbery at his Miami home on November 26, 2007. He died the following day.

Taylor was leading the NFL in interceptions at the time of his tragic death and was a two-time Pro Bowl performer. He’s arguably the most popular Washington player from the last 25 years.

The team released a statement on the news, courtesy of Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post.

Former team president Jason Wright received plenty of criticism during his time with Washington. His rollout of the Taylor jersey retirement and memorial didn’t help his standing with many of the team’s fans.

 

Commanders’ Jason Wright leaves behind a confusing legacy

We discuss the legacy Jason Wright leaves behind.

Jason Wright is no longer the president of the business operations of the Washington Commanders.

He leaves behind a somewhat complicated legacy. Of course, extreme positions are to be avoided.

A. He was working for Daniel Snyder, so you can’t blame him for anything.

B. Everything he did was a disaster.

It’s always easiest to take an extreme position because extremes require less wisdom, less discernment, and less thinking.

Working for Snyder, you can’t blame Jason Wright.

It is true the organization under Snyder was such an embarrassment because Snyder himself did not supervise, model or enforce a proper workplace culture. Even more, he was the subject of multiple investigations.

It’s hard to imagine the organization did not have an avenue to hold employees accountable. Wright no doubt helped in some regard by addressing some of the issues regarding improper behavior, and for that, he is to be commended. It also cannot be understated the overall mess Wright entered due to Snyder’s and former team president Bruce Allen’s lack of daily proper leadership.

Secondly, the team still doesn’t have a new stadium site, but that is mostly because of DMV’s opposition to Snyder himself. Thus, Bruce Allen and Jason Wright can’t entirely be blamed for the lack of progress on a stadium.

Everything Jason Wright did was a disaster.

Of course, this is too simplistic. Yet it is also true that Wright not only erred but also had colossal failures. Surprisingly, some of them involved simple principles of leadership, such as supervising, communication, and modeling.

Wright entered the scene, assuring the fan base of his impressive resume, previous success, and business acumen.

But not a few times did we find Wright smoothly articulating his message with an impressive vocabulary. Nevertheless, how effectively did Wright deliver actual substance?

Late in 2021, Wright tweeted a photo of Santa and a snowman urinating on a Dallas Cowboy helmet. When some objected to the juvenile, unprofessional behavior, which was unfitting for an NFL president, Wright responded on Twitter, doubling down and telling fans to “chill.” When that did not go over well, Wright deleted the original tweet.

Effective leadership requires clear communication of a vision and standards for your organization. Much too often, the non-football side of the organization was frankly falling over itself with comical or embarrassing errors: Sean Taylor’s family photo, the Sean Taylor mannequin, the mug of Washington state, not Washington DC, the plethora of errors when they were listing the 80 greatest and 90 greatest players in franchise history. All of these under Wright’s watch, but apparently not Wright’s supervision?

Finally, the rebranding event on NBC’s “Today” show led by Wright was so ineffective. But even more significant a question about Wright was when he then told a national television audience that Commanders was “something that broadly resonated with our fans.”

Did it? To this day, how many in the fan base have you met who suggested and supported “Commanders” before the announcement?

An anonymous connected source told Commanders Wire:

Wright came into the position with no actual experience of running an organization, especially one in such turmoil. He was unprepared, yet, believed he had all the answers.

There was a pride in hiring outside the box, not from a football background, or the area. This made for a lack of institutional knowledge and understanding of what was needed. In time, this led to a major lack of institutional knowledge.

The fan base was not easily fooled and trust was quickly lost inside and outside the organization. His role appeared to be more for show, but not one of actual effective long-lasting difference.

Some praised Wright after the announcement on Thursday, others were happy to remove another reminder of Daniel Snyder. Wright’s legacy is complicated.

Sean Taylor’s daughter honors her dad at UNC in an awesome way

Jackie Taylor will be a freshman volleyball player at UNC this fall.

The Washington franchise and NFL fans, in general, were robbed when Sean Taylor was tragically murdered in 2007. Over the years, the team has found ways to honor Taylor.

Taylor’s family also continues to honor him.

First, it was Sean Taylor’s younger brother who honored the late Washington legend. Gabe Taylor, Sean’s younger brother, is a senior safety at Rice University and has worn his older brother’s old No. 26 college jersey throughout his career. In 2021, on the 14th anniversary of his older brother’s death, Gabe Taylor helped Rice seal a victory over Louisiana Tech with a late interception.

Now, it’s Jackie Taylor’s turn. Jackie is Sean Taylor’s only child and was only 18 months old when she lost her father.

In 2023, Jackie Taylor committed to the University of North Carolina on a volleyball scholarship. She will be a freshman this fall. On Thursday, the Tar Heels revealed Jackie’s number.

Check it out:

Jackie is a 6-foot-1 middle blocker who played at her father’s alma mater, Gulliver Prep, in Miami, Fla. She continues to honor her father with the Sean Taylor Legacy Project.

Washington retired Taylor’s No. 21 jersey in 2021 and unveiled a memorial outside the team’s stadium in 2022.