The Strange Way the Washington Commanders May Predict the Election

A strange coincidence that started with the 1940 election would indicate that the result of the Washington Commanders’ final home game before a presidential election can predict which way it will play out.

The Washington Redskins—now known as the Commanders—moved from Boston to Washington, D.C., in 1937. Shortly before the 2000 presidential election, a sports-data company noticed a funny coincidence, which soon came to be known as “The Redskins Rule.”

When the Washington team won their last home game, it would seem the incumbent party would retain the White House, and if the team lost, then the rival party would sweep back into power.

That rule remained true between 1940 and 2000, and seemed to fall apart in 2004 after President George W. Bush won reelection after a bruising 28-14 loss to the Green Bay Packers, even though Barack Obama won the 2008 election following a Washington loss, seeming to reaffirm the rule.

Steve Hirdt of Elias Sports Bureau theorized that the rule could have warped into a new set of rules, “Redskins Rule 2.0,” which relied on tracking the popular vote.

“Redskins Rule 2.0 established that when the popular vote winner does not win the election, the impact of the Redskins game on the subsequent presidential election gets flipped,” Hirdt said during an ESPN interview in 2012.

Per that interpretation, every presidential election since 1940 would align, except for the 2012 and 2016 elections.

Under that interpretation, since President Joe Biden won the popular vote and won the election, a Commanders win on Sunday would indicate that Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, will win the election on November 5, and a Chicago Bears win will indicate former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee, returns to office.

In late July, Biden stepped down from the race and endorsed Harris to be his successor.

Democrats who believe in this funny rule will take heart that rookie phenomenon quarterback Jayden Daniels will play Sunday after initially looking like he might miss out due to injury in last week’s 40-7 romp over the Carolina Panthers.

The Commanders have had a high-flying start to the season with a 5-2 record and high-scoring performances against the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals. Only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baltimore Ravens have dented the otherwise buoyant start.

Daniels, whom the Commanders recruited with the second pick of the 2024 draft, also set a record as the first player in National Football League (NFL) history to clear 1000 passing yards and 250 rushing yards in his first five games.

The Bears have also had a rosy opening achieved through a series of hard-fought wins. Four of the first six games for Chicago have ended one-score games, but Chicago brought the hammer against the Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars, racking up over 35 points in each outing.

The Bears pulled in their quarterback, Caleb Williams, with the first pick of the 2024 draft, making this potentially fateful match-up a face-off between two powerhouse rookies.