Washington beat my Bills in a Super Bowl, so I come to this with history. But the franchise’s January story is one of real glory followed by a very long quiet, and then a sudden, genuine flicker of life that I did not see coming.

The dynasty Januarys

For a stretch across the 1980s and early 1990s, Washington was one of the most dangerous postseason teams in football. Three Super Bowl titles, a roster of memorable January runs, John Riggins bulldozing through a title game, Doug Williams authoring the greatest single quarter a Super Bowl has seen. They were a machine, and yes, one of those trophies came at my team’s expense.

The wilderness, and the rookie who ended it

Then came decades of mostly nothing, a franchise lurching through quarterbacks and ownership drama with barely a January win to show for it. Until the 2024 season, when a sensational rookie named Jayden Daniels dragged them all the way to the NFC Championship Game, their first deep run in a generation. They lost it to the Eagles, but for the first time in a long time, Washington in January meant something again.

Three trophies, a long dark stretch, and a recent run that woke the place up. Commanders fans, your franchise has the old glory and a new reason to believe in the same breath. One of those titles still stings me. The Daniels run, I will admit, was a good thing for a fanbase that had waited far too long.