Dan Synder vows ‘new culture’ at Washington team after sexual misconduct allegations

Daniel Snyder, the owner of Washington, D.C.’s NFL team, on Friday committed to “setting a new culture and standard” for the organization following a report from The Washington Post on allegations of workplace misconduct.

The statement comes after the Post reported that 15 women who once worked for the team alleged having experienced sexual harassment and verbal abuse by former scouts and those close to Snyder. 

“The behavior described in yesterday’s Washington Post article has no place in our franchise or society. This story has strengthened my commitment to setting a new culture and standard for our team, a process that began with the hiring of Coach [Ron] Rivera earlier this year,” Synder said in a Friday statement.

The statement came after the NFL had earlier said the allegations detailed in the Post report were “serious, disturbing and contrary to the NFL’s values,” according to the Post.

Snyder was not accused by the women as perpetrating the misconduct, but he has faced accusations that he was aware of the behavior described by the women in the Post report. The women had said the culture at the organization had contributed to the alleged misconduct.

Snyder also said that Beth Wilkinson of the D.C. law firm Wilkinson and Walsh “has been hired by the team to conduct an independent review of the organization’s protocols, including its culture, policies and allegations of workplace misconduct.”

Among those accused in the report, Director of Player Personnel Alex Santos and assistant Richard Mann II were fired last weekend, while longtime broadcaster and Senior Vice President Larry Michael said he would retire this week. 

Rivera had also condemned the alleged misconduct.

“Biggest thing is that we have to move forward from this and make sure everybody understands we have policies that we will follow and that we have an open-door policy with no retribution,” Coach Rivera said in reaction to the Post report. “Plus, my daughter works for the team, and I sure as hell am not going to allow any of this.”

Rivera, a two-time coach of the year with the Carolina Panthers, was signed by the Washington team earlier this year.

The team had announced this week it would change its name from the “Redskins,” which is widely viewed as a racial slur. 

Synder has been owner of the Washington NFL team since 1999.