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The Washington Commanders return to the site of RFK Stadium where Joe Theismann became a household name.
This is where the former NFL quarterback threw both his first and last NFL passes. After moving out of the nation’s capital to Landover, Maryland, in 1997, the commanders are expected to return home in 2030.
“There’s an old saying, you can’t go home again. The commanders prove you can,” Theismann told Pakinomist Digital in a recent interview.
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Joe Theismann, former professional football player, reacts on the sideline before the game between the Washington Commanders and the Arizona Cardinals at FedEx Field. (Tommy Gilligan/USA TODAY Sports)
President Donald Trump reportedly wants his name attached to the future stadium. Although the White House would not confirm such reports, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said it would be a “beautiful name since it was President Trump who made the rebuilding of the new stadium possible.”
Trump, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and team owner Josh Harris were in the Oval Office when the deal for the RFK Stadium site was announced. But Trump sparked controversy when he threatened to halt the team’s plans to build a new stadium in the nation’s capital if it did not bring back the old Redskins moniker.
When asked about the possibility of Trump’s name being on the stadium, Theismann didn’t offer much.
(Left) A general view of fireworks as the American flag is unfurled on the field before an NFL game between the Washington Commanders and the Seattle Seahawks at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, Nov. 2, 2025. (Right) President Donald Trump speaks during an event on drug prices in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, District of Columbia, Nov. 202. (Scott Taetsch/Getty Images; Evan Vucci/AP Photo)
EX-NFL STARS JOE THEISMANN, ALEJANDRO VILLANUEVA PRAISE LEAGUE FOR BRINGING ‘CULTURAL WEAPON’ ABROAD
“President Trump is our president. Whatever happens going forward is between the ownership of the commanders in chief and the president, and it will be what it will be,” he said.
Regardless of the stadium’s name, Theismann sees the movement as generations of Washington fans — past, present and future — all coming together.
“It’s exciting. Josh is a guy who grew up a fan of the Redskins at that time — a lot of ownership is that way — it’s exciting for them to come home, too,” Theismann said. “I think the people who were fans of the Redskins and saw us play at RFK Stadium are also fans of the Commanders, and it will be nostalgic for them. It will be nostalgic for the fans to go back to a stadium that’s going to be there — back to where that place was once before, where a lot of their childhood memories were so special.”
Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann (7) in action against the Miami Dolphins at RFK Stadium. (Malcolm Emmons/USA TODAY Sports)
The domed stadium will cost an estimated $3.7 billion.
