The Washington Commanders kick off a new season and a new ownership era with the 2023 home opener against the Arizona Cardinals at 1 p.m. on Sunday, September 10, at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. Meet the team’s biggest names while you get your burgundy and gold out of mothballs and jump back on the bandwagon.
Josh Harris
He’s a locally grown, 58-year-old billionaire (Bloomberg says he’s worth $8.78 billion) with experience owning sports franchises — the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils — and seems to be down-to-earth. The married father of four is a longtime Washington football fan who wrangled a record-setting $6.05 billion from 20 like-minded rich friends to buy the team. His first order of business: Buy beverages for hundreds of fans attending a sale celebration near Nationals Park. His next order of business is to get a new stadium — ideally, in the location of the old RFK stadium.
Magic Johnson
The out-of-the-blue minority owner is an NBA icon and entrepreneurial legend, apparently beloved by all. Harris recruited Earvin “Magic” Johnson Jr. to make sure diversity and inclusion are key components of the new Commanders. Johnson hasn’t been shy in saying what others in the C-suite might be thinking: Renaming the team to something “reflective of the city and the community” is a priority. It would be the third name in three years. A 2022 Washington Post poll showed fans were split with 53 percent fine with Commanders, and 47 percent supporting a change.
Ron Rivera
The head coach since January 2020 hasn’t had a great record, but you can’t blame him. If the constant off-field drama and the revolving door of quarterbacks is exhausting for fans, what must it be like for the guy in charge? “Riverboat” Ron, as he’s affectionately known, takes risks, but not with this team. He is in his contract year, and owner Harris is not shy about firing coaches and general managers. Rivera, who was brought in to stabilize the dysfunctional team, doesn’t have a spectacular record at 22-27-1. There’s no doubt he knows he’s auditioning to keep the job.
Sam Howell
The fate of the team rests on this 2022 fifth-round draft pick’s padded shoulders. Now that Carson Wentz is a free agent and fan-favorite Taylor Heinicke is a Falcon, Howell, 22, is QB1 — at least for now. Howell’s pro record at quarterback is … well, he’s only started one game; he’s 11 for 19 in passes for 169 yards, with one TD and one pick. But he beat Dallas 26-6 in that rookie debut, so that’s something. Howell’s only hope is that new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, late of the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, can do for Howell what he did for Patrick Mahomes. No pressure, kid!
Feature image of Josh Harris, Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty Images
This story originally ran in our September issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
