Richmond has something in common with Daniel Snyder. Both are done with the Commanders.
Via Michael Phillips of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Commanders won’t be returning to Richmond for training camp.
“That ship has sailed,” Richmond Economic Development Authority board chair John Molster said, per Phillips. “There are no plans for them to come back for the camp.”
Taxpayers will continue to pay roughly $700,000 for the facility through 2033. The Commanders started practicing there in 2013.
The team did not make the trip to Richmond during the pandemic season of 2020, and it spent only one week there in 2021. Last year, the Commanders did not go.
Cost was an issue, along with inconvenience. The team was paying $100,000 per week to practice in Richmond, when camp could be held at the team’s existing training facility.
“The problem with the short [travel] period is it’s not, from what I’m learning, it’s not financially equitable,” coach Ron Rivera said last year. “You’re there a short, brief time then you’ve got to move everything and get yourself set up again.”
Of course, new owner Josh Harris could feel otherwise. When, however, the folks in Richmond declare that the “ship has sailed,” they’re presumably already explored whether there’s a chance to bring it back.
