Wolves? Commanders? Defenders? - NFL fans react to WFT's rebranding

After two long years, the NFL will finally learn the new identity of the Washington Football Team. Originally known as the Washington Redskins, the team elected to change their name amid public pressure, calling the name insensitive to certain groups.

Over the last two years, the Washington Football Team has been the center of many jokes over the generic nature of the name.

It has been announced that the Washington Football Team's name will be revealed on February 2, 2022, exclusively on the Today Show on NBC. The news has stoked social media into speculating about the new name.

NFL and Washington fans overwhelmingly seem cautiously optimistic but nervous.

Considering how rarely NFL teams change names, this will be the team's name for decades to come. Here are some of the reactions to the news.

NFL fans show curiosity about WFT name change

WFT v New York Giants

The Washington Football Team is offering hints to help stoke interest in the name change while keeping expectations in check.

According to Jake Russell, the team's president, Jason Wright, has already said the team will not be called the Red Wolves or Wolves due to trademark issues. As such, there are still a multitude of possibilities.

What will the name be? Since a date has been set for the franchise to reveal it, one can surmise that the team's ruling powers have likely agreed on the final choice.

If that is the case, there are a handful of people who know about the change and likely plenty of documents available that contain the new name.

Will the name change be leaked?

Philadelphia Eagles v Washington Football Team

Since they've made it public knowledge that a name change is coming, they've opened the door to the NFL world poking and prodding every level of the organization for the scoop.

Considering how rare name changes occur in sports, it is likely there isn't a foolproof system of process in keeping a tight lid on the information.

If that is the case, a leak in the days or weeks leading up to the reveal seems likely. The case of the name change echoes another industry famous for leaks: video games.

The biggest video games are often revealed to the world live on press conference stages that millions of gamers watch online.

For the biggest games, the name reveal often occurs due to a leak in the days or weeks leading up to the event.

In several ways, the Washington Football Team's name change in the NFL is similar to a game name revealed in the video game industry at E3, a video game trade event that premieres current and upcoming games.

One can make a safe bet that the NFL world will likely know the name of the Washington Football Team before the second day in February.