Do Redskins Fans Care About Playing the Ravens?
Aside from needing a win to stay in the hunt for an NFC wild card, it doesn’t feel like the Redskins’ upcoming game with the Ravens is a big deal. The local media might think so, because the only thing better than hating someone next door to you is hating someone 40 minutes up the road from you.
But Redskins fans don’t seem to have that much passion going into this thing. A brief snapshot of local bloggers yields few results on the game. The Mottrams are talking about faux QB controversies, and Agent Steinz isn’t even in town.
The game is not exactly lighting up Redskin message boards, and the players haven’t made any funny or inflammatory comments. Yet.
So, in essence, Orioles-Nationals gets more love in DC than Ravens-Redskins.
After the DC loyalists get in their digs about murder charges and chlamydia statistics, there’s really nothing left to jive about. It’s just two teams with surprising records, trying to bully their way into a playoff appearance. Nothing to shake a stick at, right? I mean, it’s not like they are in the NFC East or anything.
Its easy to see how a so-called super fan base can let Terrible Towels invade their own stadium. When it comes to teams not based in Dallas or Philadelphia, Redskins fans just don’t care. And that’s not surprising, considering that the opposing cities actually make the two aforementioned rivalries.
Like the Redskins, the Dallas Cowboys are one of the foundations of the NFL. But unlike the Redskins, everybody has a deep rooted hate or love for them in every city in which they play. If you are coach or quarterback of this team, you are a lightening rod for coverage and controversy in the global scope of sports media.
The Philadelphia Eagles are home to the rudest, most vile fans in American sports. Philadelphians live their daily lives as if they were perpetually in attendance at a Eurpoean soccer match, and amplify this self-disdain through their fandom. People around the country hate Philly fans, and consequently, Philly teams.
The Washington Redskins, in the last 20 years, are popular for three reasons. Bad ownership, underachievement and playing the Cowboys and Eagles on a regular basis.
The Redskins haven’t exactly been the best at holding up their end of the rivalry bargain with Dallas and Philly. In the last 15 years, they’ve twice won 10 games, finished better than .500 five times and have made the playoffs three times in that stretch. And yet, Redskins fans brush off the prospect of a solid local rivalry with the Ravens.
How Daniel Snyderly of them.
I don’t blame Skins’ fans for yawning about this contest. The Ravens haven’t been around long enough, and they haven’t played enough head-to-head games for people to build memories around. But in a recent history where there isn’t much to discuss, the prospect of some new rivalry magic should be a little more than a passing thought.
The NFL thinks so, but its a shame that Redskins fans don’t.
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[...] Ravens fans have argued that Skins faithful should embrace the potential rivalry with their neighbors to the north, while others have used their laser sharp wit (go hard, bro!) in [...]