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Commanders new alternate helmet called 'inappropriate'
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- Commanders new alternate helmet called 'inappropriate'
Well, that only took two days.
On April 15, 2026, the Washington Commanders unveiled their new alternate uniform and helmet. The helmet features the logo of a spear through the "W." Two days later, on April 17, the Association on American Indian Affairs called the Commanders ' logo update "disappointing and inappropriate," adding, "We are not your mascot."
Ah, yes, here we go again. If anything should be clear to the Washington Redskins/Commanders fan base, it is, "this is not over." If anything should be clear to the Commanders' ownership group, Josh Harris , Mitchell Rales, David Blitzer, Mark Ein, and others, it is this: "It is not over."
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"This" being political friction, political debate, social media grenades, unrelenting pressure to conform, name-calling so that you are immediately viewed as guilty of such charges of racism, prejudice and bigotry. These are just the type of things Harris and his group have attempted to avoid. They would have LOVED to return to being the Washington "Redskins."
However, the Harris Group is not stupid. They remember how NFL owners rolled over, scared to death of the politics and peer pressure. Where were the NFL owners when one of their historic franchises was literally under attack and being censored, blackballed and canceled until that evil name, "Redskins" was erased from existence? They were silent and left the team to struggle on their own. That was partly the result of an arrogant owner who did not make friends easily among his fellow NFL owners. Yes, Dan Snyder was a major problem.
But Josh Harris is not Dan Snyder. He has gone out of his way to avoid being offensive, but it has cost him significant economic losses. He inherited a fan base upset their team name had been taken from them. Fans who for 50 years had rooted for the Redskins were suddenly forced to watch a team with a different name, different uniforms, a team that looked more like an expansion team than their team.
Harris has implemented two changes this offseason. The franchise will return to the uniforms of their Super Bowl era when they appeared in four Super Bowls, winning three from the 1982-1991 seasons. The second change is a spear added to the alternate uniform. Harris didn't want too large of a change suddenly, so the spear is only on the alternate helmet. One can understand that the Harris Group wants to see how the fan base reacts and if they literally "buy in."
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But two days in, and the opposition is already fueled and ready for battle. So to Josh Harris and his ownership group, don't be alarmed, don't be pressured to please these people. The franchise has already made numerous changes and concessions, but are these protestors pleased? Will they ever be pleased? That last question, I hope you realize, is purely rhetorical.
So be ready, there will be the typical performative outrage, the emotional manipulation, the exaggerations associated with creating their own narrative. There will probably be attempts of their authoritarian-leaning censorship. If you stand up for the spear, you may be demonized and unfairly falsely slandered.
After all, isn't that all part of their modus operandi?
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Washington Commanders new alternate helmet called 'inappropriate'
