In recent weeks, speculation has been rampant in mainstream and social media that the Washington Commanders will be resurrecting the iconic logo of an Indian chief that existed on the Redskins’ helmets for nearly a half century before it was retired with the name in 2020. In a statement, the team says it “has no plans to return to the previous logo or name,” but that’s just the Commanders’ present standard line. A source on Capitol Hill told me that the team’s merchandise celebrating former players will eventually show the logo and possibly even the name Redskins. Groups advocating for the return of the team’s Native American theme, such as the Native American Guardians Association, will be enthusiastic about those moves.
Why Capitol Hill? Montana Sen. Steve Daines has been in discussions with the team’ front office about honoring the logo and the legacy of Walter “Blackie” Wetzel, the Native American who created the logo in 1972. Prior to the `72 season, Wetzel approached Redskins coach George Allen about changing the logo. Wetzel, chair of Blackfeet Nation in Montana and a former president of the National Congress of American Indians who knew JFK and RFK, requested that the team change the “R” on its helmet to an image of John Two Guns White Calf, a Blackfeet Nation chief starting in the early 20th century and the apparent image on the Indian Buffalo head nickel that was minted in 1913. That whole sequence about the creation of the logo, which adorned the Redskins’ helmets for nearly 50 years, is documented in my book, George Allen: A Football Life.
Earlier this year, Daines said he wouldn’t support the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act, which opens the doors for the team to possibly return to D.C., unless the Commanders honored Wetzel’s legacy and the logo. The team has since erected a permanent installation at Northwest Stadium honoring Wetzel, but Daines wants the team to go further by, for instance, showing the logo on its merchandise. A few weeks ago, Daines supported the RFK bill in a 17-2 Senate committee vote that will bring the bill to a floor vote probably by the end of this year. Once it becomes law, the existing RFK site will be turned over to the D.C. government for 99 years, with the strong belief that D.C. will try to lure the team back to the city. Maryland and Virginia have also expressed strong interest in hosting the team, which has played at a stadium (now Northwest Stadium) in Landover, Maryland since 1997. The current lease expires in 2027.
So it’s just a wait-and-see at this point with the steps the team will take in restoring the logo. I’m optimistic that we will see the logo prominently displayed in the near future, not only on merchandise honoring former Redskins but perhaps on the team’s helmets in a uniform throwback game.
Stay tuned.
Prior to the Commanders’ 42-19 win over Tennessee at Northwest Stadium on Dec. 3, I asked a few ardent Washington fans for their opinions on a possible return of the team’s Native American theme:
Richard Price Jr.
“I would definitely like to see the Redskins’ name come back. It means the world. I’ve been a fan since `87. And the years of stink are hopefully null and void. And moving forward we’re going to bring [Jayden Daniels] and take it to the house one day. We’ll see how it goes. I don’t see why it went away. To bring it back would mean everything to us as fans.”
Stuart Gaskill
“The return of the logo is everything. We had that for so many years. It just describes our team. Just Redskins. I think it will always be that. In my mind, it will always be the Washington Redskins. The logo represents Native Americans. But look what they went through. So I think it’s not a bad thing to use their logo. It’s a great thing to represent the Indians and what they went through.”
Carolyn DuPree
“I’d like more of a Commanders look, like more of a star and a powerful look than what we have now. The Indians to get the name … because it was so racist. Being an African-American woman, that’s how I feel, too. Maybe the logo shouldn’t come back, but if it does it should be different than what it is, similar but just more of a stronger look than resembling a Redskin. Put it in gold, put it in silver, but it in something, but don’t make it a Redskin.”
