When I first moved to Raleigh it was a big Redskin town. That was my nickname for them as they weren't one of my favorites.
As for the name, having a team named for something is a honor. Something the team admires for bravery, strength, etc.
Any teams wanting to be known as the Vinnies, my blessing. :^)
Based on these complaints, there are many team names which are offensive:
Boston Celtics is insulting to the real Celtic people.
Minnesota Vikings is offensive to real Vikings.
Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pittsburgh Pirates are offensive to the criminal element.
San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Angels, New Orleans Saints, are all offensive to religion.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish is offensive to the Irish.
Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, Seattle Mariners, all offensive to people who do those jobs for a living.
What about all of the animal nicknames? Where is the PETA crowd on this issue? Isn’t it offensive to Dolphins, Panthers, Jaguars, Ravens, Falcons, etc. to have so many teams with animal nicknames?
Chicago White Sox must be racist.
Phoenix Suns? In an era of concern about global warming, how can we name a team after the sun???