Commanders Sale: NFL Receives Josh Harris' Deal With Current Owner, What Happens Next?

The long-time reign of Dan Snyder as the owner of the Washington Commanders is nearing its end after the NFL reportedly received the preliminary agreement between him and prospective new owner Josh Harris.

Sportico first revealed the news and provided the following details about the deal's progress.

"The league will review the deal and return it to the parties for alteration or, if approved, signatures. At that point, it will be resubmitted to the NFL for final approval from its owners, according to the people, who were given anonymity because the matter is private," Scott Soshnick wrote.

Those hoping for a change of ownership in for the Washington-based franchise can rest easy as their report was corroborated by renowned NFL insider Ian Rapoport with a three-word confirmation of his own.

Harris and his group, which features NBA legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson, have been viewed as the frontrunners to acquire the Commanders from Snyder after long-standing rumors that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was just waiting in the shadows to strike.

However, sources reported last week that such rumors were only just that, leaving the door wide open for the 58-year-old from Chevy Chase, Maryland.

But it should be noted that the sale is nowhere near confirmed as it is a common business practice to "share financial data with the NFL ahead [of] an official announcement — and that's not always limited to the likely winning bidder," as stated by A.J. Perez of Front Office Sports.

Since acquiring the franchise for $800 million in 1999, the highest points of the Commanders have been a single Divisional Round appearance in 2005 with current Detroit Lions quarterback coach Mark Brunell as their man under center.

Outside of it, the Commanders have only appeared in the postseason four times between the 1999 and 2022 NFL seasons, further emphasizing the struggles the three-time Super Bowl-winning franchise has had under Snyder's hand.

Harris' group and Snyder reportedly agreed to a $6 billion bid that will set a new record for the highest price ever paid for a professional sports team–$1.4 billion more than what the Denver Broncos sold for to current owner Rob Walton last season.

Fans have made it known that they were unimpressed with the direction of the franchise after posting the lowest average attendance in the NFL last season (58,106) and the lowest total attendance (1,084,489)–about 23,000 less than the Buffalo Bills.

The sale of the Commanders is chugging along, but cautious optimism should be exercised as anything can still happen between now and the announcement of the formal deal.