The Washington Redskins are considering Bowie State University for its new year-round training facility, but District and Virginia officials are weighing offers, too. Prince George’s County officials are finalizing an offer using the college site following a three-month feasibility study. The Redskins declined comment, but sources close to talks say county leaders believe a deal can be struck before year’s end, and the team relocated by 2013.
Bowie has competitors, though. Virginia officials don’t want to lose the team after 40 years when coach George Allen created the NFL’s first year-round headquarters. The team spent 21 years in nearby Dulles before moving to Ashburn in 1992. The District also wants its namesake team to return.
Still, the Redskins are once more facing an outdated and undersized facility. The team is starting construction of an indoor bubble to train in during poor weather. With the marketing and administrative staff that owner Dan Snyder brought to Ashburn after buying the team in 1999, more space has been long needed. Coach Mike Shanahan has also considered moving the three-week training camp after eight years in Ashburn.
Prince George’s offer has a long-term strategy to keep the team in nearby Landover when FedEx Field’s ownership reverts to the county under a 1996 deal struck by late owner Jack Kent Cooke, according to state political sources. The Redskins would be free in 2027 to relocate to the District.
Indeed, the past three District mayors have talked informally with Redskins officials over eventually returning to a site aside RFK Stadium where the team played from 1961-96. District officials would require a daily facility as part of any future stadium deal, so having the team already in its borders would greatly increase its chances of regaining the team.
A site adjacent to RFK would house a new, larger stadium given the former Redskins venue seated 25,000 less. But dealing with city, federal and national park agencies over the land was too much for Cooke, who bolted to three locations before settling on Landover. Whether Snyder could deal with the multiple agencies seems ambitious given he doesn’t have nearly the political clout Cooke yielded. At least two years would be needed to build a new stadium, meaning Snyder must decide by 2025 whether to leave Landover.
Virginia leaders merely seek losing another company in the Dulles Tech Corridor, especially one with a $150 million payroll on players alone. Add to that a large support staff and state income taxes plus team and player spending and the Redskins become a needed economic engine, not to mention the prestige of having an NFL team headquarters.
Bowie has a past connection with sports. Bowie State once housed the former Washington Bullets daily facility until Verizon Center’s 1997 opening. A nearby race track was also the nation’s top winter course before closing in 1986. The proposed site would also be accessible by Metro via MARC trains.
Examiner columnist Rick Snider has covered local sports since 1978. Read more on Twitter @Snide_Remarks or email [email protected].
