Lavar Arrington is back. No, the former No. 2 overall pick in the 2000 NFL draft is not back on the field, but he is back home with the organization where he played six of his seven seasons.
The Washington Commanders announced last week that Arrington would be the Week 11 “Legend of the Game.” It was a moment that Arrington himself almost wondered if it would ever happen.
Speaking to JP Finlay of NBC 4 and 106.7 The Fan in Washington, D.C., Arrington spoke of returning home.
“I’m never at a loss for words, but this has been really awesome,” Arrington said. “Been too long. Been a lot of time and a lot of emotion, but there’s come a point and time where there’s so many things that are bigger than some of things that happened in the past. Having the opportunity to come back, the reception, just the communication leading up to coming back. Them making it real, the way that they did.”
Arrington then discusses if he
“I don’t want to say I thought about always coming back because you get to a point where you’re away for so long that it just kind of becomes almost like a dormant, dead memory to you.”
The former No. 2 overall pick then discussed how he and the team connected. Arrington appreciated how the team reached out to him and communicated with him.
Then, Arrington, once the franchise’s most popular player, discussed the fans.
“I’m excited to see the fans,” Arrington said. “It’s never been about there being any beef with the fans. One singular entity that kinda bonded us all together in this turbulent ride. It doesn’t feel like that anymore.”
Arrington then said something that should excite all fans.
“In three hours, I can feel an energy here that I’ve never felt,” Arrington said. “So, if not for anything else, just to be able to feel what I’m feeling now as a longtime retired former player of this team, I’m glad that these current players get an opportunity to feel the energy that I’m feeling right now.”
It’s good to see Washington making things right with many former players estranged from the team. Whether it’s Darrell Green, John Riggins, Champ Bailey, or Lavar Arrington, everyone has had the same message about the current ownership group. It’s a different time in Washington.
The name may have changed, but so has the play on the field. It’s good to see Arrington back in a place where he was beloved for a while until issues with former owner Daniel Snyder led to his departure. Arrington played for Washington from 2000-05 and then spent one season with the New York Giants before a motorcycle accident led to his retirement.
