Washington Commanders · Franchise era 6 of 7
RGIII's spark and the identity crisis: the Washington Commanders story
The story in one sentence
Griffin's 2012 offense electrified the league before injury, while the franchise later changed its name and continued cycling through quarterbacks.
A spectacular rookie season gives way to a decade of change
Robert Griffin III, Ryan Kerrigan and Terry McLaurin gave the era its recognizable core.
Its ending created the conditions for a new ownership era.
Timeline
How it unfolded
Before 2012
What came before
Ownership and coaching turnover prevented a stable successor, even as several veteran teams produced brief postseason runs.
- 06TradeMarch 13, 2012
March 13, 2012
The RGIII draft trade and its eight-player tree
Washington wanted to end a decades-long quarterback search. The Rams chose volume, then repeatedly traded the incoming selections to spread the return across three drafts.
To WAS20121STround asset
To LAR20121STround asset20122NDround asset+2 assetsWashington's RGIII trade-upWAS receives 2012 first · No. 2LAR receives 2012 first · No. 6, 2012 second · No. 39, 2013 first · No. 22 + 1 more5 original assets · 3 outcomes tracedOpen trade → 2013-01-06
Wild Card: Seattle Seahawks vs Washington Commanders
2016-01-10
Wild Card: Green Bay Packers vs Washington Commanders
2021-01-09
Wild Card: Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Washington Commanders
After 2022
What came next
New ownership hired a modern front office, drafted Daniels and watched his poised rookie season return Washington to the NFC Championship Game.
The core