First and Unsure of the Goal

Redskins Fans Try to Set Sights After Home Opener

By the time Washington eked out a 9-7 victory over the St. Louis Rams on Sunday, the sunburned burgundy-and-gold throng that turned out for a perfect day of tailgating and football was chanting "Let's go, Redskins" -- apparently forgetting that minutes earlier, many had booed the home team for an anemic performance against an opponent that has now lost 12 in a row.

The home opener was nerve-racking for fans who wanted the offense to find a way, at least once, to get into the end zone. It didn't happen, and although the die-hards cheered the victory, they couldn't help grousing about familiar questions: Is the coach up to the task? Is this our quarterback of the future? Can this year's superstar catch help us turn the corner?

So even as they celebrated a victory, fans such as Aaron Grossman, 23, of Arlington County pondered the future and wondered whether this is the year the Redskins will return to prominence.

"It was dirty, but we won," Grossman said. "I mean, we're on the up. It's only the second week. We're still finding ourselves."

The first home game of the season is a fall rite for a franchise that, despite its struggles in recent years, is an integral part of life throughout the region.

Fans gather in family rooms, huddle at sports bars and pack into FedEx Field in Landover, as 87,780 did Sunday afternoon. Before the opener, fans were in a celebratory mood as they filled parking lots to drink, prognosticate and scarf down crab-and-cheese balls, ribs and steak at elaborate tailgate parties. Possibility hung in the air as heavy as smoke from portable barbecues.

"The first home game is always the best day," said Urbanna, Va., chiropractor Kim Lemon, taking in the sunlight, the fluttering flags and a fan's off-key rendition of the Redskins' fight song.

This season the team instituted a new system for tailgating that segregated large-scale parties, such as those that tote their own smokers, to the back of each lot, rather than the free-for-all system of snagging spots that had reigned before. Tailgaters grumbled at the new rules, but the team said it would reduce gridlock.

On the field, fans have questions about the leadership of quarterback Jason Campbell and Coach Jim Zorn and whether the multiyear salaries the team is paying players such as defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth ($100 million) and cornerback DeAngelo Hall ($55 million) are worth it. The concerns are similar to questions raised about past coaches (Steve Spurrier, the Ol' Ball Coach) and players (Deion "Prime Time" Sanders) who came to the Redskins with fancy résumés but produced less-than-stellar results.

"We're getting impatient," said Les Cox, 31, of Davidsonville. "They've spent a lot of money over the years, and we want results lining up with the payroll."

Fans want to know: Can the Redskins turn their fortunes around this year and make the playoffs? Or will the Deadskins return?

"People don't know what to expect. Can we get some points? Is Campbell the guy?" said Bryan Shew, 37, an Army sergeant from Carlisle, Pa. He said Sunday's outcome was a "disappointing win. . . . It just feels like we're a mediocre team right now."

Kevin Ewoldt, who runs a Redskins Web site called Hogs Haven, said many fans are watching to see how the team does this season while debating whether to retain their season tickets. "People are tired of the Redskins not winning when the expectations are there that they should win," Ewoldt said. "The big picture is: Are the Redskins building a team for the future?"

Owner Daniel Snyder and the Redskins front office also keep folks talking around town. One of the latest sore spots: the team's effort to sue a 72-year-old woman after she defaulted on a multiyear contract for premium season tickets when the housing market crashed. The team changed its mind after the case was publicized.

No matter their problems with the team, however, fans gather on game day to watch. A handful of Redskins fans at Nellie's Sports Bar in Northwest Washington were in good spirits as they downed their beers in front of the big-screen TV.

"We are not going to be the Detroit Lions," quipped Tim Himes, 44, of the District. He was evoking the National Football League's losingest team, which has not won a game since 2007, and Washington's next opponent.

Sunday's win wasn't pretty, but it's still early in the season, a time when optimism flourishes. "Field goals are points," said Kirk Chatman, 40, of Fort Washington, deflecting playful criticism that the Redskins would have fallen to a more talented opponent. "I think it's probably our year right now."