National Football League

Jay Schroeder adds unusual twist to Washington Redskins nickname debate

Published Oct. 31, 2014 11:26 a.m. ET

foxsports

The Washington Redskins' nickname has been the source of much debate. With the team heading to Minnesota this weekend, Twincities.com reached out to some former Washington quarterbacks for their feelings on the issue.

Jay Schroeder took the cause to a different place . . . way different. After being told that Joey Browner, a former NFL defensive back who is three-quarters indigenous and a member of the American Indian Movement that will stage a rally Sunday, felt the nickname is degrading, Schroeder responded by somehow relating it to the Carolina Panthers.

"Let's take the context of the word Panthers,'' Schroeder told Twincities.com. "It's an animal, but let's recall what happened in the 1960s with the militant groups (the Black Panthers). If you're going to take that context, you can take every word and look at it and decide what your own meaning is going to be.''

He added that the discussion is over the top.

"I think it's been blown way out of proportion,'' Schroeder said. "I think that the Washington Redskins have represented the Redskins name very well through the years and bringing glory to it. If you look around the country, if you want to change the Redskins, you've got to change a lot of names. I'm wondering why everybody is going after the Redskins and not everybody else.''

Another former Washington quarterback, Billy Kilmer also chimed in, telling Twincities.com's Chris Tomasson: "I think they should keep it,'' Kilmer said. "It's been there for so long. Everybody's got to be so politically correct today. ... I think it's all politically connected and I think it's festered by liberals against (Redskins owner) Dan Snyder, who's a conservative."