NFL owners discussed Dan Snyder and the potential sale of the Washington Commanders over two days at the league’s committee meetings in Palm Beach, Florida, according to multiple reports.
The committees, made up of various team owners, met weeks before the league is scheduled to meet in late March for another round of owners’ meetings in Arizona. While reportedly not every owner attends the committee meetings, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay — who sits on the finance committee and said last year there was merit to removing Snyder from the NFL — posted a picture of himself in Florida. Tanya Snyder, Washington’s co-owner and wife of Dan Snyder, was also reportedly there.
NFL Owners Meetings tonight, March 6, 2023… Palm Beach Florida- Breakers Hotel🏈✌️ pic.twitter.com/SIUk9kvc9y
— Jim Irsay (@JimIrsay) March 7, 2023
The Washington Post reported that no decisions were made about whether the league would take a vote to remove Snyder from ownership if he refuses to sell the Commanders. Some owners, the paper added, were still “hopeful” that Snyder will agree to sell the franchise without a vote taking place, while others were “not as optimistic about that prospect.”
The Commanders have been on the market since at least November, when the team confirmed that the Snyders had hired an investment bank to explore a possible sale of the franchise.
Since then, multiple candidates — billionaires Josh Harris, Tilman Fertitta and Jeff Bezos — have emerged, but no deal has been reached. According to The Post, Snyder, who has reportedly barred Bezos from making a bid, has angered other owners by asking for indemnification against future legal liability — although the team called that report “simply false” in a statement.
The demand has renewed discussion about whether Snyder could be voted out — an unprecedented move that would require at least 24 votes.
The Post reported Tuesday that owners will not move toward a vote ousting Snyder at the meetings in Arizona, with one source predicting that the deliberations over the sale process could drag into the summer or even the fall.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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