Joe Theismann still remembers the rocking stands and the roaring crowds of RFK Stadium. The former quarterback said he, along with several Washington football legends, can’t wait for the franchise’s planned return to the District at a new stadium.
“When I first stepped into RFK Stadium, I knew I found a home,” Theismann said in a video for the Commanders announcing the agreement.
District Mayor Muriel Bowser and Commanders owner Josh Harris announced a $3.7 billion deal to build a new arena on the site of RFK Stadium on Monday. The planned construction will also feature a commercial plaza, affordable housing and green spaces.
Franchise icons like coach Joe Gibbs, quarterback Doug Williams, running back John Riggins and cornerback Darrell Green celebrated the news with the mayor and the owner.
“This is special for all of us,” Green told reporters. “I just hope we can get it all done and pull the trigger. It’s going to be huge for our community, for the city.”
The proposed deal — which features a nearly $4 billion investment from the Commanders and the city — has not been finalized. A majority of city council members still need to sign off.
Bowser said a vote is expected this summer.
That hasn’t stopped the celebrations.
“It’s time to revive that legacy,” Theismann said. “Let’s bring the Commanders home.”
Even players who never wore burgundy and gold are feeling the excitement. ESPN analyst Louis Riddick played 93 games with the Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons and Oakland Raiders in the 1990s. There’s nothing like RFK Stadium, though, he said.
“My first NFL game I ever attended as a kid was here in 1981. Seattle @ Washington,” Riddick wrote on X. “My first ever regular season road game as a pro was here in 1992. Atlanta @ Washington. This is where the franchise belongs.”
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said he also grew up attending Washington home games at RFK Stadium. He called the site a “special place.”
“This is a special day, one that many of us have been looking forward to for many years,” he told reporters on Monday, briefly discussing his fond memories of the old arena. “A generation of fans growing up rooting for the team did not have that experience. The next ones will, and I could not be more excited for them.”
Harris and co-owners Mark Ein and Mitchell Rales basked in similar nostalgia on Monday.
“The best memories of my youth were in these seats at RFK Stadium with my family,” Ein wrote. “Visions can come true and we are bringing the team home!”
Despite concerns from some residents in Kingman Park — the neighborhood just outside of the 180-acre RFK Campus — responses to the news have been largely positive.
President Trump is one of thousands of District residents celebrating the occasion.
“The new Stadium Deal is a HUGE WIN for Washington, D.C., and for the Team’s incredible fan base,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “It will also boost Economic Development, create more Jobs and, hopefully, lead to less Crime in the area. We are making Washington, D.C., GREAT AGAIN, one step at a time!”
If approved by the city council, the new RFK Stadium could open in time for the 2030 NFL season.
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
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