George Wallace, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – We usually don’t hear which football teams politicians root for on any given Sunday. But this week, we can probably figure out who Gov. Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama are rooting for Sunday at Fed Ex Field.
It’s known as the “Redskins Rule.”
In the team’s 75 years in the nation’s capital, covering 18 presidential elections, the Redskins’ final home game prior to Election Day has correctly predicted the election’s outcome in 17 of the 18 elections.
In 17 of those 18 presidential elections, a Redskins win in the team’s final home game before Election Day has meant a win for the incumbent party occupying the White House. A Redskins loss in that final home game before the election has meant a victory for the challenging party.
The only exception to the rule came in 2004, when incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Sen. John Kerry despite the Redskins losing their final pre-election home game, 28-14 to the Green Bay Packers.
The Redskins are 9-9 in home contests preceding a Presidential Election, with their last win coming in 1996 when they defeated the Colts 31-16.
That’s not the only thing going on Sunday at Fed Ex Field. It’s the annual homecoming game where the team will honor the “10 for 80” honorees, along with over 150 former Redskins greats.
The Redskins will also be wearing their 80th anniversary throwback uniforms for the first time. The uniforms are a modern interpretation of those worn back in 1937, the year they moved to Washington, D.C., from Boston and also won their first National Championship.
Don’t worry, they are a lot better than what we saw last week in Pittsburgh.
Forget all of those numbers and stats, the Redskins are facing a must-win at 3-5 with the 1-6 Panthers in town. The Skins hit the bye after this week, then come back to face the Eagles. A 4-5 record sounds a lot better than 3-6 doesn’t it?
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