NFL finance committee unofficially approves Josh Harris’ purchase of Commanders

The Washington Commanders sale is in sight — and one of the last remaining hurdles appears to finally be resolved.

With NFL owners set to gather Thursday in Minneapolis to vote on Josh Harris’ purchase of the Commanders, the league’s finance committee reportedly met remotely Monday and reached an unofficial agreement to recommend the deal to the rest of the league. 

A vote would have been unlikely without the finance committee’s recommendation. But the Washington Post reported that the committee took a “straw poll” Monday and agreed to vote for Harris’ deal unanimously. The paper added that the committee’s official recommendation is likely to come Thursday morning, hours before the rest of the owners meet. The committee did not take an official vote Monday in part because some members missed the session.

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For Harris’ deal to become official, the billionaire needs to receive approval from 24 of 32 owners. In May, Harris entered into a signed agreement with owner Dan Snyder to buy the franchise for a record $6.05 billion. 

A straw vote in favor of the Harris group would indicate that the legal issues between Snyder and the NFL have finally been settled. Over the past few months, Snyder and the NFL had reportedly been haggling over the topic of legal indemnification — a clause that would protect parties against future legal liability. 

Last week, the Post reported that talks between the two sides hit a “serious” snag that threatened the approval of the deal. The issues arose over the topic of former Raiders coach Jon Gruden’s lawsuit against the league, and how Snyder was unwilling to indemnify the league and owners against liability related to the Gruden case. 

Gruden resigned in October 2021 as coach of the Las Vegas Raiders after leaked emails — unearthed after the NFL’s investigation into Washington’s workplace misconduct — revealed he used racist and homophobic language while an employee at ESPN. The former coach has since sued the league accusing it and Commissioner Roger Goodell to sabotage his career. 

The source of the leak has not been revealed, though former Washington president Bruce Allen testified to Congress that the NFL believes Snyder was behind the act. Snyder has denied the accusation, while the NFL has also denied being behind the leak.

But the scuttlebutt on Monday was that Snyder and the NFL have an agreement to resolve the issues — clearing the way for Harris’ approval. Once voted on, the sale would then reportedly be in a position to close as soon as Friday.