Thom Loverro
Columns by Thom Loverro
LOVERRO: Jay Gruden faces Redskins’ reality, and it isn’t pretty
After this 45-14 beat-down on national television by a team that seemed to destined to be an NFC East bottom feeder this season, Gruden's team is not just behind the 8-ball — it is broke, busted. Published September 26, 2014
LOVERRO: Randy Knorr comfortable as guy beside the guy in Nationals’ dugout
Knorr is Matt Williams' bench coach, his consigliere, so to speak, his dugout adviser on baseball matters. But if Knorr, 45, had his way, he would have been the boss, not the adviser. This would be his championship team, not Williams' squad. Published September 25, 2014
LOVERRO: Empty statements, transparent motives mark NFL’s response to crisis
It really doesn't matter anymore who is lying. We're at the point where you have to assume they all are. Add truth and the NFL's credibility to the growing list of victims here. Published September 23, 2014
LOVERRO: Redskins, Eagles ready for more after Thrilla in Phila
Sunday's 37-34 Eagles win over the Redskins at Lincoln Financial Field was everything you would want in an NFC East rivalry game. Frustration, exhilaration, desperation, retribution, confrontations, altercations, ejections — all of it adding up to one of the more hard-fought games between these two division rivals in recent years. Published September 21, 2014
LOVERRO: Mike Rizzo truly the architect of NL East champion Washington Nationals
The Nats won the division title going away without a .300 hitter, a 15-game winner, a 25-home run hitter or a 100-RBI man. They won it with a rookie manager who lost his biggest bats in the opening weeks of the season, and has been without one of the team's best players for much of the year. They won because of a group of Mike Rizzo moments. Published September 18, 2014
LOVERRO: A Redskins QB controversy worth cheering for
Three years ago, the quarterback controversy was Rex Grossman vs. John Beck. Think about that one. What other town could possibly get worked up about Rex Grossman vs. John Beck? At least now the debate is about better quarterbacks. Published September 16, 2014
LOVERRO: With Robert Griffin III injury, mixed emotions for Redskins
It was almost like an Irish wake Sunday at FedEx Field. Everyone was celebrating and hugging each other — on the Redskins sideline and in the stands — as the clock wound down on Washington's impressive 41-10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Yet perhaps we had witnessed the end of Robert Griffin III's career as a Redskin. Published September 14, 2014
LOVERRO: Why is Roger Goodell still employed? He always makes money for his partners
Why else would this guy — the face of your business, who can't even be seen in public now (he canceled an appearance Wednesday night at an event honoring Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson) — keep his job? Published September 11, 2014
LOVERRO: A year ago, NFL used Ray Rice jersey to market apparel to women
In a seemingly bottomless pit of shame for the league, following the release of the TMZ video and the NFL and Ravens backtracking to cut their ties with Rice, its advertising campaign launched in September 2013 to sell product to women is particularly disgusting for the message that it delivered. Published September 9, 2014
LOVERRO: NFL, Ravens felled by Ray Rice punch we shouldn’t have had to see
The NFL — which now has suspended Rice "indefinitely" — is claiming that Rice wasn't honest with them about the details surrounding the incident, but what exactly did it think happened when the initial video showed him dragging his fiance out of the elevator? Published September 8, 2014
LOVERRO: For Robert Griffin III, Redskins, something is missing in rough opener
Is this what it has come to for Griffin — not losing the game instead of trying to win it? One of the problems in Griffin's so-called development is his mentality of trying to win the game on every play. Well, they drummed that out of him. Published September 7, 2014
LOVERRO: Redskins will see a pair of high-profile debuts Sunday
Gruden is coaching against what seems to be destiny here — failure. He can win Sunday against the Texans, and the destiny will still be there, hanging over him like every coach who came before him since the glory days of Joe Gibbs' first time around. Published September 4, 2014
LOVERRO: Robert Griffin III, Jay Gruden need an open relationship to succeed
"He's got to have a trust factor that the drop is going to match the receiver's depth and all that stuff," Gruden said. "He's got to let some things fly. He's just a little bit hesitant right now, which is normal with some new concepts." Published September 3, 2014
LOVERRO: For Robert Griffin III, ‘Will to Win’ no longer sufficient
If the Redskins quarterback was producing a sequel to last year's documentary, it might be called "RGIII: We Fixed What We Had to Fix." Not quite as stirring as "The Will to Win." Published September 2, 2014
LOVERRO: Daniel Snyder would do well to avoid Cooke’s Redskins stadium blueprint
Sometimes Redskins fans forget the fact that it was Cooke who ripped the heart out of the franchise by building a Home Depot do-it-yourself stadium out in Raljon, Maryland. Published August 31, 2014
LOVERRO: Matt Williams has earned hard look for Manager of Year honors
Washington was picked by many observers to be one of the NL playoff favorites going into the season. But the burdens put on Williams shoulders to get this Nationals team where it is now — with one of the best records in the NL, comfortably on top of the division — put him right there. Published August 28, 2014
LOVERRO: Paul Blair to be honored by grassroots tribute from Orioles fans
Two Orioles fans are urging others to come out to Camden Yards on Sept. 12 to honor the team's longtime center fielder, who died late last year. Published August 26, 2014
LOVERRO: Redskins’ take on ice bucket challenge can leave fans cold
When your team looks bad in the third game of the preseason — like the Redskins did against the Ravens Saturday night — you take the bucket of ice, pour it over your head, and remember, "It's preseason. It doesn't mean anything. This team went 4-0 last preseason and wound up going 3-13." Published August 24, 2014
Washington Nationals’ walk-off run a true display of heart
While the Redskins pass time by playing out the NFL's pretend portion of the football schedule, the Nationals have captured Washington's attention by winning. Winning every game. Winning games that they seemed intent on losing, in the nightly drama that has played out at Nationals Park. Published August 21, 2014
LOVERRO: Johnny Manziel, Robert Griffin III have plenty to work on, from stupidity to survival
Browns cornerback Joe Haden — who hails from Prince George's County — told reporters after the game that abuse Johnny Football was taking was some of the "worst things you could ever imagine, from everybody, their players, their fans." Seriously? What did he face when he played for Texas A&M — choir boys? Published August 19, 2014
