Grant and Danny
Mark Rypien Joins G&D To Discuss The Commanders Name & RFK Stadium
Welcome back to the 1757 golf course out here in Ashburn near the commander's facility, Grant and Danny, with you on 106/7 the fan, and we are honored right now to be joined on site by a Super Bowl MVP, Super Bowl 26, a multi-time pro bowler, and one of the great Redskins pastors in history, the legendary Mark Ripon is with us on G&D and we are honored to have him on set with us here from this golf event. So, Mark, thank you for the time. We appreciate you. Thanks guys. It's great to be on the show and to be out here with these veterans. What a moving experience. I think the cool part about this is that all these guys that have served our country and the ultimate sacrifice, you know, that they give each and every day, and to play with Matt Williams today was our Medal of Honor recipient and Nick Leavenry and what they mean to all of us. And I think it really sets a stage here where we as athletes and we play in our sport and we get to become part of the team and you see these guys and how they, they're the armed forces for the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Air Force. Each one of these armed forces are like a team too and they have great stories, fun guys, good golfers, a lot of them, and it's just a tremendous to be a part of this and help out what they're trying to do and that's helped their families. And of service men and women that are doing what they do for our country. Heroes and Legends event out here benefiting the Wounded Warriors, just an amazing cause. You mentioned stories I always have been growing up listening to my mom and dad tell me so many stories about this proud franchise. I love when you and some of your teammates and some of the greats in organizational history get together because I'd imagine you guys can spend a pretty good yarn too. Our fishing stories get bigger and bigger. It's great because I live on the West Coast. I'm in Spokane, Washington so I only get out here probably four or five times a year. And my daughter and her husband was Lieutenant Colonel Marine Corps and my granddaughter live up in Baltimore. My mother daughter lives in Orlando so I get on the East Coast quite a bit but I enjoy coming out here and seeing guys like you know guy came in to the league with Raven Caldwell play, seeing him play golf and support this great movement that we're trying to do here. And to get out here and watch them and then see our commanders play everything. We're all eager and excited to see them get back on track and you know it's a process. I think as we all know Jayden Daniels is pretty special. If we can keep him healthy and you know I think that's going to be the main thing. You can't give up four touchdowns a Baker Mayfield expect to get into the playoffs so we've got to tie some loose ends together there and get back here on our own home turf and play well in front of our family. We play well in front of our fans and get our fans and this community who I think is excited coming in here a little bit more excited about our football team. Mark Reppen with us here on Grant and Danny. I want to touch on that Mark. Going back to that post 87 magical run that incredible season Super Bowl. There's a bill that has to happen and I think it came on board 88 if memory serves. Yeah 86. Oh there you go. So but you saw kind of that transition to go from that where you guys wanted to be to exactly where you wanted to be. You know he came in together. I just I just told him that. I just got done mentioned that Raven. Yeah but they're they're kind of in the beginning stages that now coming off it sees that nobody was happy about. You got a new game staff knew everything. Go into that that where it's you know the light at the end of the tunnel exists. You know where that is but getting there is really really hard. Oh absolutely. The bar was high. It was already high. You know you had JT that Thiesman and Rigo that had won a Super Bowl. That 82 team was probably the best team in the NFL that didn't win a Super Bowl. And then to see the the maturation of of those guys in 86 go through a strike here and a lot of us not even knowing if we're going to come back. But Joe Gibbs word of word of a man of his word said you know you guys go out together you come back together you know and so we went out that strike here came back together. Our replacement team was really really good you know and got us in a good position. And then of course Doug got hot in the playoffs and just rolled through the playoffs and we got Darryl Green's touchdown against the Bears and stopping Darren Nelson at the one yard line against the Vikings and those those things I remember like yesterday. And I was in a sweater right in place down you know scripting plays and all that and and then do to roll Denver and the Super Bowl after being down 10 nothing first quarter and getting that 42 or 35 points a golden quarter of the NFL. And so Doug was kind of my mentor you know for the next couple years and we played off and on together but he's very helpful. And one of the reasons you know I had a lot of success was because Jerry Rome Doug Williams Joe Gibbs a very offensive minded a head coach you know and and we had the hogs and we were able to do the things that you want to do and football anyway that's run the football and and make plays off play action and that year and 91 92 we certainly did that. I think we obviously led the league and I don't think anyone's come close in the last 20 years to to making the big plays that we made that year and we had special players you know we had Gary Ricky and art. The posse that were you know instrumental and along with Ernest Binder the hogs and and it was just a great group of guys Super Bowl 26 MVP Mark Rippin on Grant and Danny. I always wanted to ask you about that season it was nine sacks given up right all year. I mean that's unheard of in any standard but today I mean that's just a number that it seems comical. How much of sacks do you say are that was a great line everyone knows that. But quarterback driven to getting the ball out dropping to the proper depth I mean it seems to me like when there's a sack it's immediately where the pass protection was bad. There's a lot more to it than that obvious a lot more there's receivers running hot routes and running backs running hot. Routes getting the ball out when you have to know and you don't have enough guys to block the guys that they're coming with. And then there's other times where they're running they're going to rush more but you got maximum protection and you got one on one with your receivers with no one in the middle of the field. So all you have to do is get your drop make sure you get your set yourself and make the throw. So there's a lot of components to that you know most most importantly our guys up front you're only as good as the guys up front. Our hogs are great. Donnie Warren was a special part of that is you know he's not a big pass catching tight end but he was a guy in the running game and the passing game was able to block Lawrence Taylor and Reggie White and Jerome Brown. I mean there's great football players back then too and we had to have special pro special protections against those guys game plan those guys understand when they're coming what they're doing. There's a lot of guys on the same page we had smart players we had great athletes and the receivers were as big a part as was earned a spiner as far as blitz break offs and all the things you have to have in order to not take a sack. And I didn't care it was like my numbers were 57% I could have held on the ball and maybe thrown 70% you know completions. That wasn't what we wanted we didn't want to get ourselves in a bad situation at any point in time we want to put ourselves in a good third down situation get rid of the ball if you have to make a play when you need it to. And we are all pretty good at that and so I and plus the fact our defense was so good they've got us in great field position a lot of the time. And our team as a whole with Wayne Severe and special teams you know Richie Pettibald run the defensive side and of course Joe Gibbs and what we did in the offense it was just a special year that year 91 92. Doors take us to summers away or winter adventures and afternoon getaways your dedicated fidelity advisor can help you open those doors by working with you on a comprehensive plan to help you reach your wealth's full potential because doors were meant to be opened. Visit fidelity.com/wealth investment minimum supply fidelity brokerage services LLC member NYSE SIPC. So you mentioned this I'd forgotten you were drafted in 86 but then you know you played in 88 it's just a different time now right where the instead of rookie sets foot on case. He's the starter has to be and you know the clock has already taken because of the CBA and the way contracts are but that adjustment guys don't have that luxury to wait anymore. Jaden Daniels what's he going through right now and just kind of you know related to your own experience and what you see from him. Well you you want you want Jaden Daniels to be good last year when he wasn't even here. It's like you know what can you do for me right now you know that's that's the the the narrative for the league right now. I was fortunate I've had some questionable injuries my first two years you know. They still nagging you still bother. Oh my goodness are you roll out. In fact one was above a tire mark you're supposed to be down. Oh and we'll jump back jump back up ready getting the huddle of this mark you're supposed to be you know a little hurt aren't you oh sore. Is that like IR stuff you know yeah so yeah there's some you know some things that we were able to manipulate a little bit to keep guys on IR because they didn't have practice squad then so I'm very blessed because of that you know and and was willing to do whatever role that I had to to keep on the football team and then when my time came was was able to watch and that's that's a hard thing now for Jayden Dan. He doesn't get an opportunity to sit there and watch you know what's happening how the plays are you know how how fast the game is you know what it's going to be like if he was in that situation. I had two years to do that so when my time came I was I was more prepared than Jayden Daniels was but this kid's this kid's as gifted as they come. I mean he's got more talent on one pinky than I did my whole body and and again I think if we have to be good on defense you got to get him the football you know we can't be given up 30 points you know to a tap of a Buccaneers nothing against the Buccaneers but we got to be better on defense we got to have get him the football get him more touches get our players more touches get our skill players more touches and be good on special teams. The special teams has changed now you see where kickoffs are going now I mean everyone is up into these optics now where they saw what was happening during the preseason they kicked it in the red zone they got it past the 32 to the 35 they said well I'm going to kick it out the back of the end zone you're going to get it at 30. So that's what kickers are doing now it's almost a waste of special team talent you know if you got great special team coverage guys they're being wasted by this new rule and and I still don't I don't understand it I don't know nor will I ever understand what are they going to do if it's an on side kick. I mean you're pretty much you have to tell before you have to tell you got to tip your hand yeah so it's to me it's a it's kind of a crazy thing I don't know I think the NFL will look at it and see how this year goes but I do know we want to protect you want to protect the players we want to protect players from those massive you know 30 yard running down fields and Clyde and helmet to helmets obviously we want to do that but got to be a different way of doing that what's your take as someone who all your great memories are at RFK stadium we're talking a lot about trying to get the team back to DC and the RFK site as opposed to maybe something immaculate out by where their current stadium is do you have a horse in the race or care much where the next stadium is I care a lot I mean I just I'm just so far removed from it that I hope they get it in RFK hope they go back to that that site wipe the whole place up and build a brand new stadium there and and let's get back to you know be in what we were at one point in time you know one of the most dominant franchises in the history of the NFL and I think so if we can do that and I think that'll also bring back some some memories and some your father and her son the son was being maybe 10 years old when we play then now he's 40 years old and his son's coming in the grandson of the dad who brought his son to the game get them back to that area that place in that special place where you know we can reminisce and build something again because we're starting over from scratch with his newer management team who have been a proven winner in their other franchises would be 76ers in the devils and and soccer and so they've they know they know what the formula is just get get us a stadium now and get get it back there at RFK where RFK site is and and get this fan base excited I mean I almost you know it almost hurt like 10 years ago to come back to a Cowboys Redskins game and see more Cowboys fans in the in the stadium then it's that's embarrassing that's not what we're about and I guess we have to put a product out there we have to put a product that wins weekend and week out is consistent and and I think I think we got the people to do it now let's just get out and do it we're still trying to get used to the name is it growing on you know never will and never played for the commanders. I absolutely support the commanders and what they're doing now but I never played for them and you know it's just the stay in age now that we have to deal with and I just I just don't hope they don't lose the fact that we were Redskins and that's all why I played for that's all I knew and that's all you know we remember so it's this new thing that we're going to support these guys because that's the error we're in it. I was inside a few minutes ago Danny and someone said that the commanders of legends are out there and well are they I was like which ones yeah I'm not a commander legend I'm not I'm a Redskins legend. Oh I'm a Redskins lover I'll say you can say we got you a little MVP I love I love my guys I love this guy Ricky Irvin I mean he's one of the best people and and all those guys they come back and they they play in our Mickey steel event we have out in Queenstown and we get about 50 of these guys and they're so they mean so much to us and Ricky was a big part of that Super Bowl team and we love him and and all the guys you know they're just they're just mean a lot. Have you had much interaction with Josh Harrison company and what they've been like yeah if yeah during you know in kind of when they got the team and there's some stuff that they're doing in Vegas I went out there and got to meet Josh and his brother and you know they've invited me up to to New Jersey I've ever got there for Devil's game or if ever in Philly you know and but I just want to I want to support these guys in this team and get these this commanders football team back to play the type of football the Redskins played back in our air so we appreciate the time and any thank you guys awesome catching up with you and just great to get the chat with the legends that that made this team still what it is now so many years ago fantastic these guys but it's more it's better to be here with what we're doing here today and that's really really honoring these these veterans honoring our service men and women and making sure our families the families these service men and women are remembered and also taken care of and that's what this money is for us to help them.