- Get a new owner! This is the most popular answer. It is also the most unrealistic. There is no way Dan Snyder is selling the Redskins. Even though they have been garbage since he took over, they are still one of the most profitable franchises in all of professional sports (Forbes ranks them as the 8th most valuable, behind only the Cowboys and Patriots in the NFL). Why would Dannyboy want to sell the golden calf? He will continue to make money because the Skins have an extremely devoted fanbase. They will show up no matter how terrible the team is. They've been doing it every year since 1992, haven't they?
- Change the name! Maybe it is a curse. Maybe, much like building a house on an Indian burial ground (thank you Poltergeist), having a name that is racist has brought all the bad spirits to FedEx Field, and put a hex on the team. I know a lot of people in DC don't want to change the name. To be honest, I would be a bit perturbed if they did, even though I know it is the right thing to do. But it has to happen at some point. If it happens soon, the curse could be lifted while RG3 still has a few healthy knee ligaments left. The new name? The Washington Warriors. It is alliterative, it fits in the fight song, and it can still apply to the proud Native American spirit Snyder claims that Redskins does. Also, Danny already owns the name, so it just makes sense.
- Move back to DC! I do really like this idea. I never saw a game at RFK, but I have seen a few at FedEx. It is a dump. It is just an awful stadium. I have no idea what Jack Kent Cook was doing building his new home out in Landover, MD, but it was not a good idea. Much like the name, the curse of not playing in DC makes some sense. The Skins were successful when they played in RFK. They stink at FedEx. Currently, only DC United play in RFK, and they are getting a new stadium down the street from my Nats. All Snyder would have to do is buy the land and build a new field. Jerry Jones did it, and now that field hosts every major sporting event. Imagine if DannyWorld was able to pull in the Super Bowl, the BCS title game, the NCAA Final Four, and Wrestlemania? All that money in his pocket and into DC businesses would make the city start to like him a little. Plus, it is a prime location. It is on the metro, there is parking all around it, and one could even walk from Capitol Hill/Eastern Market/Potomac Ave areas if they wanted to go to a bar before or after the game. This should happen!
- Get a new coach! Well, more and more it seems like this will happen. I understand that Mike Shanahan was a big name. I also understand that he only won with John Elway. He was alright with Brian Griese. He was ok with Jake Plummer. He's been decent with RG3. But he has a lower winning percentage with the Redskins than Norv Turner did, and Snyder couldn't wait to fire him when he bought the team. Furthermore, his staff isn't exactly stellar. Jim Haslett has one of the worst defenses in football. Mike's son Kyle Shanahan is only a mediocre offensive coordinator, who seems unwilling to build a respectful relationship with the team's franchise Golden Boy. So, they all go and the Skins start over from scratch. A new report said they would try to get Baylor's head coach Art Briles, who of course coached RG3 during his Heisman campaign. Would it be worth a shot? Sure. Really, anything would be better than Shanny and Danny fighting in public.
- Get RG3 to take some blame! At first, I really liked RG3. Hell, I still do. He seems like a genuinely good guy who just wants folks to be happy with him. However, everything that Donovan McNabb and Santana Moss have said about him seems to be coming true. Rarely does he say that he was responsible for a loss. He can seem more concerned with his newest Subway ad then with his airmailing open receivers. The great QBs always take the blame for bad games. Tom Brady may yell at his guys on the sidelines, but the first thing out of his mouth after a loss is "I could have done better". RG3 is young. He is famous. Maybe this year's massive failures will humble him and restore that drive to win as top priority over that drive to be known.
- Build through the draft! My biggest complaint with the Redskins is that they don't take the draft seriously enough. It seems like they are always trading away picks when they have massive holes to fill. Free agency can only help you so much. At some point, you need to have homegrown prospect that help you win. Look at the Ravens. Ozzie Newsome may be the best GM in all of football. He knows how to draft players. He drafted Terrell Suggs, Haloti Ngata, Marshall Yanda, Paul Kruger, Lardarius Webb, Joe Flacco, Ray Rice, Ed Dickson, Dennis Pitta, Jimmy Smith, Torrey Smith, Kelechi Osomele, and Matt Elam. He signed John Harbaugh. He is responsible for putting together a complete team that has made the playoffs the past 5 years and is the reigning Super Bowl champions. You have to have a good GM who is dedicated to the draft and to building a true team over putting together a group of stars. That is how you win titles.
Some of these changes are pretty easy ones. Some are a bit harder. One, the new owner, simply isn't going to happen any time soon. So, can someone actually fix the Redskins? I think so, but it will be a process. They should try, at least, cause it can't get much worse than it has been.
