ASHBURN, Va. — Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn is a couple of weeks from leading the the team out of the abyss. I call it decades of darkness for the underachieving franchise.
Over the past 10 years, for instance, we've seen wo playoff appearances and no playoff victories. Let's bury the past years under previous owner Dan Snyder like he buried any chance for success.
Each Monday during the regular season DQ — as he’s often referred to — will join me for a one-on-one interview to discuss the previous day's Commanders game. If you know me, it won’t be just Xs and Os. One of my goals with this weekly get-together is to let you get an inside glimpse at the coach and the team.
As luck would have it, DQ had a little extra time this week, so we thought why not have our first chat. Coming on the heels of naming Jayden Daniels his starting QB felt like a good starting point.
“I saw it from the first time rookie camp was here and I arrived pretty early and he was right there, and same with the next day … you can see some people do it for a short time, you know, trying to make a good first impression. But what you’ll learn with Jayden is that it doesn’t stop,” Quinn said of the No. 2 overall pick.
Washington has one final preseason game this Saturday night. They will host New England at Commanders Field.
Immediately after that, the roster has to be cut down from 90 to 53. It’s not Quinn’s favorite time.
“[It's] the toughest part of the job because so many people are going for it, at the highest level," the coach said. "But the conversation about the roster is always ongoing with [General Manager] Adam [Peters] and I, and how do we find the group together.”
I have to say I’ve covered this franchise for almost three decades and I’ve never had a coach ask me how do we make our Monday conversations good for WUSA9, the Commanders and the fans. Never until I met DQ. Stay tuned.
And don't forget, our Commanders insiders have a chance to ask the coach a question during my time with him weekly. Here's how to sign up.
WATCH: The full interview with Dan Quinn below