Plenty of anecdotes have made the rounds in recent months regarding the habit of Washington owner Daniel Snyder to insist on being called “Mr. Snyder.” (I was once present for one of those; during Super Bowl week in Dallas, a staffer on PFT Live made the mistake of asking “Dan” to move his bottle.)
However, as trivial and meaningless demands go, here’s an example that takes the cake and gives Snyder the undisputed crown of King of Petty.
Tuesday’s item in the Washington Post explains that Snyder became miffed in January 2020 after learning that former Washington Football Team president Bruce Allen sent a congratulatory text message to new coach Ron Rivera, but not to Snyder.
Snyder, by the way, had recently fired Allen.
The owner tried to avoid paying Allen the balance of his salary under his contract. During the legal battle that unfolded, Snyder’s lawyers wanted Allen to agree to send the congratulatory text message as part of a settlement.
The dispute eventually was resolved, and Allen never sent the text.
Meanwhile, why didn’t the NFL demand text messages when investigating the WFT workplace culture? Snyder supposedly didn’t send emails. Apparently, he sent texts. It’s hard not to wonder what’s lurking in there.