Prior to Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons, the Washington Commanders unveiled a new tribute to beloved safety Sean Taylor, who was murdered on this date back in 2007.
However, the tribute to Taylor fell woefully short of the mark, and Commanders fans are not happy.
The “statue” of Taylor looks more like a mannequin that the Commanders pulled out of the team store at FedEx Field, and beyond that, the setup is filled with mistakes that were quickly pointed out on social media.
Here is the moment the tribute was unveiled at FedEx field:
As was pointed out, the cleats are not exactly right:
You can also see how they used some old, worn-out socks on the statue as well.
Frankly, this reminded me of one of the most random things I have ever stumbled across in my life. This display outside of a suburban Maryland office park of a Washington player blocking a punt from the Dallas Cowboys:
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Full disclosure, I took this photo back in 2013, and have no idea if this installation still exists. But, how random is this?
Back to the Taylor memorial. The tribute was quickly ridiculed on social media:
nike jersey, reebok pants, adidas soccer cleats. incredible.
— charles (parody) mcdonald (@FourVerts) November 27, 2022
If you thought this team might put even a little bit more effort into honoring Sean Taylor after the embarrassing stunt last year, you don’t know this team very well https://t.co/u5ZYs9d1N2
— Josh Billinson (@jbillinson) November 27, 2022
As noted above, this is not the franchise’s first attempt at honoring Taylor, and last year’s effort went over just as poorly. Last season, the team paid. tribute by naming a street near FedEx field after him, and by painting his “21” on the sidelines. However, mistakes were made:
The road was re-dedicated in front of porta-potties.
The sideline number tribute was in the area where VIPs stand.
The half-time ceremony involved no speeches or recognition.
The owner wore a hoodie to the pre-game meeting with family. pic.twitter.com/HeroBghuK8
— Chad Ryan (@ChadwikoTWW) October 18, 2021
The road named after Taylor was one where the port-a-potties were set up, and the “21” on the sidelines was in the area roped off for VIPs. That led to Jackson Mahomes recording a TikTok on the “21” painted in Taylor’s honor, as Washington was hosting Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs that afternoon.
Mahomes later apologized for the incident.
Sunday’s poor attempt at honoring Taylor is just the latest mistake in a season filled with mistakes from the franchise. To be fair, some have pointed out that with the organization looking to move to a new stadium, perhaps a more permanent statue of Taylor will be unveiled at a later date.
But given what happened last season, and the mistakes present on this year’s effort, Commanders fans are beyond disappointed.
As they should be.
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