It has been a rough last couple of weeks for the Washington Redskins that has led the team down the path of finding a new name. The franchise has already moved toward retiring their previous moniker that has left many wondering when their next choice will come in the rebuilding of the organization’s image. There may not be an inkling to what direction the franchise is heading with their next name.

Washington Redskins’ name change

With the recent push for social change in the United States, that reignited the substantial effort to finally get Washington to step away from the name they have held for the last 87 years.

That saw several of the team’s significant financial partners up the ante to get that change moving forward. FedEx, who holds the naming rights to the franchise’s stadium under a $205 million deal that extends through 2025, sent a request for the team to change their name. It has also seen sponsors, such as Nike, Amazon, and Pepsi, pressuring the organization to make that move.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell chimed into the situation with him supporting a name change. That gave way to team owner Dan Snyder finally caved last Monday, announcing that his team has retired the name. The next question that has arisen is what name the team will take to move into the new era in the franchise’s history.

Washington Redskins’ new name may have been revealed

Since Washington officially retired their previous team name, several suggestions have gathered headway in the discussion.

It has seen names such as the Red Tails, which is a reference to the Tuskegee all-black WWII fighter pilots, garnered much traction. With that in mind, the team’s next name may have been leaked as reportedly the company that manages the team’s official website recently registered a new domain under DCSentinels.com. (H/T Brian Giuffra of The Big Lead)

Chad Ryan, who podcasts about the NFL team located in Washington, D.C., stumbled upon a Reddit user who had done some sleuthing and found news worth sharing. Apparently the same company that registered and manages the website Redskins.com recently registered a new domain name, DCSentinels.com. That doesn’t mean the new name of DC’s NFL team is the DC Sentinels, but if it is, one has to wonder if the XFL will sue them for stealing the team name of their squad in DC.

It’s hard to gauge how much credence is there, but the fact that it’s the same company that works with Washington’s team website shifts things in that direction. As for the connection to the XFL team named the DC Sentinels, the league is trying to sell it assets that includes abandoning the trademark for that team name, according to Darren Rovell of Action Network . The team has instead chosen the Defenders, which opens the door to the Sentinels being Washington’s next name change.

When will the next choice be made?

There is still no clarity about when Washington will announce their next name, but it’s a process that they are likely taking a thorough look at their options.

It’s an opportunity for the franchise to reshape their image and begin a new era away from their previous name. That makes their next choice that much more critical to be one that moves away from any racial connotations or anything that can draw that type of criticism.

Only time will tell if Washington moves in the direction toward making significant progress in revamping the organization’s image and reputation.