Commander Country

Remembering Sean Taylor 13 Years Later

It's a loss that is much more than a loss, one that many will never get over and is still is painful to think about. Washington star Sean Taylor died 13 years ago

Chris Russell

ASHBURN, Va. - It was 13 years ago today (November 27, 2007) that a life was tragically cut short and the fortunes of the NFL franchise in Washington changed, seemingly forever. 

Washington's Sean Taylor was murdered in cold blood, passing away after receiving emergency treatment. The organization lost a bright star and a "rock star'' in many ways to the Washington Football Team fan base. 

His young daughter, his girlfriend and his family all mourned with the NFL community. It's always tough to remember what could have been and to remind myself of how I was critical of Taylor, on and off the field, in his career. Call it another "teaching moment'' as we should all be nicer and more understanding of one another.  

Once a year, we're all reminded of what Washington, and the world, lost on this day 13 years ago. 

Highlights of Taylor's greatness are always something that reminds you of what Washington lost on the field. 

Remember how Hall-of-Fame great Randy Moss was?

A look back at some of the news coverage of the tragedy that Taylor and his family endured. ...

Mourning isn't supposed to be easy; WFT's Thanksgiving opponent, the Dallas Cowboys, are presently going through it following the passing of assistant coach Markus Paul. But ...

It's fair to say that Washington has never recovered on the field. They've tried to sign so many safeties and all of them have been, well, not Sean Taylor. It's not their fault but it's still true: O.J. Atogwe, Madieu Williams, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix ... Troy Apke, Phillip Thomas, Reed Doughty and more. 

I can argue that not only has WFT not filled that hole in their defense, but in some ways, the spirit of the organization was lost 13 years ago today as well. This is a time of thanks, as it has been in coinciding with the Taylor family's time of loss. If only the Washington Football franchise could somehow find inspiration from the memory of the great Sean Taylor rather than, as I often wonder, feel haunted by it. 

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Chris Russell
CHRIS RUSSELL

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