New Redskins Tailgating Rules Generate Plenty of Discussion

Many Washington Redskins fans have recently received what they deem to be very bad news. Fortunately, the news does not involve the team in any direct way, but it does affect fans who like to arrive early, set up shop and tailgate until kickoff. According to a letter recently mailed to some Redskins' suite holders, tailgating around FedEx Field will now be limited to "the last few rows of each lot." Tailgating is flat-out barred in Platinum Lots.

Team spokesmen, of course, are putting a much different spin on the situation. They have announced there will be a new parking lot opened up, which adds about 3,000 spaces. They have also reworked traffic patterns and parking policies -- in an effort to better handle the flow of incoming and outgoing traffic before and after the game.

"We expect to have more tailgaters than ever," said Mitch Gershman, the Redskins Chief Operating Officer. "Those who want to meet with their friends will have more space, and those who want to simply park will find it easier to do so."

The chief source of fan complaints on message boards thus far has been the portion of the letter sent to ticket holders which addresses where people park. In the past, spots were basically given on a first-come, first-served basis. As we understand it, in the past, people could arrive at the crack of dawn and take up several spots in the front row closest to the stadium.

No more, because now each vehicle will be directed to a specific spot by a parking attendant.

Moving forward, fans who wish to just park in a single spot and walk into the game will be given spots closest to the stadium. Fans who wish to nab several spots and tailgate for hours will be sent to the back of the parking lots.

"Everyone who wants to tailgate should be able to tailgate. We absolutely believe that," Gershman said. "This is designed to improve the experience for fans who want to tailgate."

"Our outside consultant analyzed the flow on roads and in the parking lots at FedEx Field, with cameras recording the traffic patterns. What we found was that when tailgaters spread into multiple spaces, it caused congestion in the lots, and resulted in inconvenience to everyone - the fans tailgating and the fans who were just looking to park in their assigned lots."

Obviously, two natural sides to the discussion appear immediately.

The pro-tailgaters will likely cry foul that they are being relegated to the back of the lot like some sort of nuisance. If you go to the effort of waking up at 5 AM, they'd argue, why can't you park right next to the stadium and be able to walk the shortest distance into the game once game time strikes. After all, it's an American football tradition to show up hours before a game, fire up the grill, crack open a few drinks and toss the pigskin around.

On the flip-side, some tailgate parties can get out of control and are not conducive to a family atmosphere. People who are annoyed or disgusted by some tailgate parties would likely to be extremely happy to hear they won't have to deal with this headache when attending Redskins games in the future.

Thus, there are some quite animated arguments across the internet on message boards and talk-radio lines in the DC area are buzzing. This will likely continue for a while.

As we could see in the above quotes, the Redskins are doing everything they can to try and accommodate both groups. You aren't always going to make everyone happy, and the big-time tailgaters are the ones disappointed here, even if the Redskins say they expect more tailgaters than ever.

FanHouse has contacted some Redskins' public relations personnel with the hopes of having a few more questions answered, and we'll update the story should any more information come to light.