Saying he was “pumped to get rocking,” Dan Quinn was officially introduced by the majority owner Josh Harris and general manager Adam Peters as the next coach of the Washington Commanders.
The hiring of the 53-year-old, most recently the defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys, caps a four-week search highlighted by several rounds of interviews and a dramatic spurning of the club by Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson who took himself out of consideration while the Commanders’ brass was flying to Detroit to interview him.
All of that was forgotten in Ashburn yesterday, however.
Quinn comes to Washington touted as the best pick of all of this year’s candidates, at least according to league insiders who allowed themselves to be quoted anonymously in reports over the past few weeks.
Quinn inherits a team that went 4-12 last year under Ron Rivera. He needs to decide who his quarterback will be, fix a defense that regressed under former defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio last year, and convince a fan base it isn’t watching the beginning of another multi-year rebuild.
“Your words, not mine,” he said good-naturedly when asked about a rebuild.
“I know it’s a big topic. This is a recalibration, finding our north again…. You will not hear me say the word rebuild at all. This is about accessing what we have, how we add to that, and how quickly we can accelerate this process together,” he said.
The identity of the team will be a key in that recalibration, according to Quinn.
“Explosive and physical,” Quinn said. “The explosive comes offensively and in the return-game forms big plays through the run game through play action…. On defense, that’s the energy-generating football that takes place on an interception, on a score for a return on defense… the sacks, the fumbles.” “How do you do that? You have to be bold you’ve got to be aggressive and have the payers to do that,” he said.
The head coach didn’t tip his hand about what the roster might look like in 2024 or which players may or may not be back with the team. He did say that Eric Bieniemy will not be on the coaching staff. Earlier in the day, the club announced hiring Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator and Joe Whitt Jr. as defensive coordinator.
As one of just 32 people in the world to hold an NFL head coaching job, it’s safe to say Quinn knows as much X’s and O’s as any coach in football. The pressure now turns to Peters, the team’s newly minted general manager. It is his job to remake the roster, he has five of the top 100 picks in this spring’s draft and almost 90 million dollars in salary cap space to spend in free agency.
Peters says whatever the roster looks like when training camp opens, it will be put together with the types of players Quinn feels he needs to become competitive quickly.
“Fans of the Commanders not only just here in the DMV but all over the world, will love watching Dan’s team play,” Peters said. “Dan and I are going to be in lockstep in everything we do, we already are, and we will continue to be, we will keep the team and staff connected.”