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The Washington Football Team formerly known as the Washington Redskins made history when they recently announced Jason Wright as their team president. This move is historical for many reasons, the primary one is because in the history of the NFL, there has never been a black team president. Jason Wright is a former running back aged 38 now with several notable teams to his credit including: Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and the Atlanta Falcons just to name a few.
Wright spent 7 years in the NFL from 2004-2011, after ending his professional football career, he went on to earn a MBA from the University of Chicago. In a statement released by the Washington Football Team, Wright will “be responsible for leading the organization’s business divisions, including operations, finance, sales, and marketing.”
What it means
The owner of the Washington Football Team Daniel Synder said the following about Wright taking his new position on the team: “If I could custom design a leader for this important time in our history, it would be Jason, his experience as a former player, coupled with his business acumen, gives him a perspective that is unrivaled in the league.”
This is the second major change to occur to the Washington Football Team in two months following their name change. The team was originally named the “Washington Redskins” however after the recent uptake in social justice causes such as Black Lives Matter, the team was forced to conduct a thorough investigation into the offensive nature of their name.
The team is showing continual progress by hiring Jason Wright as team president. The move marks a monumental time in the NFL where for a long time, African Americans have been ousted from high-level positions within the league.
In a statement released by Wright himself about the move, he said the following: “The transformation of the Washington Football Team is happening across all aspects of the organization from football to operations to branding to culture and will make us a truly modern and aspirational franchise.”
What to expect
Aside from being the first black team president in NFL history, Wright is also the youngest person to become the team president of an NFL franchise. He’s also only the fourth former NFL player to ever become team president, adding even more expectations onto his new role.
As the 2020 NFL season has yet to start, plans are already being made to decide on this great American past time will be enjoyed during the time of COVID-19. With other sports like the NBA starting their seasons with virtually crowds and containing players inside of bubbles, we’ve yet to hear any official plans on how the NFL plans to adapt to the ongoing pandemic.
One thing is for certain, with people like Jason Wright becoming team president and all of the other wonderful social justice initiatives taking place in the NFL, this year is surely going to be one we won’t forget any time soon.
