Despite the fact that the press release was panned on Twitter, the Washington NFL team’s name is gone.
But there’s one question a lot of people had about the announcement: if the franchise is getting rid of the old name, why didn’t it announce the new one?
The press release said owner Dan Snyder and head coach Ron Rivera “are working closely to develop a new name and design approach.”
Yet per the Washington Post delivered this report: “On Sunday, two people with knowledge of the team’s plans said that the preferred replacement name has been held up by trademark issues, which is why the team couldn’t announce the new name Monday.”
ESPN’s Adam Schefter said the same, but that they have the name and there are “legal formalities” to clear:
"I believe they've made a decision on the name."@AdamSchefter believes we could hear an announcement on the name for the D.C. football franchise "as early as this week." pic.twitter.com/T7byj3X6mZ
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) July 13, 2020
It could all be due to an actuary named Martin McCaulay living in Alexandria and some other folks. From Richmond.com:
When speculation began to swirl (in 2014) that the Washington Redskins might have to change their name, out of respect to the Native American community, he went on the United States Patent and Trademark Office website and applied for a trademark for the name “Washington Pigskins.”
McCaulay, a 61-year-old actuary who lives in Alexandria, has picked up a number of other potential options. He’s filed 44 claims related to potential Washington team names. …
For a small community of speculators, trying to grab a trademark on the new Redskins name is like buying a lottery ticket — a minimal investment with a potential major payoff.
And Pro Football Talk reports McCaulay might be the owner of more trademarked names that could be of interest to Snyder:
A Sunday search conducted by PFT of the USPTO’s public trademark database revealed that Phillip Martin McCaulay (it would be one hell of a coincidence if it wasn’t the same guy) has recently filed applications for the following trademarks: Washington Redtails (July 7 and July 5), Washington Monuments (July 6), Washington Veterans (July 6), Washington Renegades (July 6), Washington Red-Tailed Hawks (July 4), and Washington Americans (June 18).
We’ll see if McCaulay or others end up getting paid for this brilliant foresight.
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