Is Mark Rypien Right About Commanders New Name?

Did the Washington Commanders changing their names from the old moniker of "Redskins" make them nothing more than an expansion team to some of the franchise's best players?

That's at least the argument made by Super Bowl XXVI Mark Rypien.

Washington's starting quarterback on the 1991 championship team spoke on Grant & Danny on 106.7 The Fan in Washington to talk about the team switching to the new Commander's name and how he doesn't see himself as part of the franchise.

"No, it never will," Rypien explained. "I never played for the Commanders. I absolutely support the Commanders and what they’re doing now. But I never played for them.

"It’s just this day and age now that we have to deal with. I just hope they don’t lose the fact that we were ‘Redskins.’ That’s all I played for. That’s what I knew, and that’s all we remember."

Is Rypien right? Did Washington spurn the decades of championship football to simply change a name that some groups were uncomfortable with?

The Native American Guardians Association and several other prominent members of the community do not see the racism that has previously been tagged with the name believing the cultural significance is more important than anything else.

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While Washington has said they won't go back to the old name, it seems that some of the old greats of the franchise are now considering the team nothing more as an expansion team to a point.