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It’s hard to blame Dan Quinn for wanting another shot as an NFL head coach. With his team practically clearing space for the 2016 season Lombardi Trophy the Falcons coughed up a 28-3 lead to the Patriots. But whether he can right that wrong with the Washington Commanders is an even bigger challenge than you might imagine.
Even if you’re a Commanders fan, the obstacle in the mirror may be larger than it appears. It is a three-decade mountain.
First, let’s give Quinn his props. It would have been easy to let the failure eat him up inside. But he guided the Falcons to a 10-6 mark in 2017 despite missing the playoffs. The Falcons went 7-9 in 2018 and 2019, and an 0-5 start led to his dismissal in 2020.
This is where Quinn could have faded into oblivion. Instead, he landed in Dallas and turned the Cowboys into one of the NFL’s most feared defensive units. They produced monster stats, and Quinn’s reputation received a cable-TV fixer-upper restoration.
Maybe the Commanders wanted Ben Johnson (Lions) or Mike Macdonald (Seahawks) before they gave the head coaching job to Quinn. But that makes zero difference for this discussion.
What head coach Dan Quinn faces with Commanders
Let’s get it out of the way quickly. Previous owner Dan Snyder wrecked the organization. He deserves blame for the current condition as Washington compiled a ghastly record of 164-220-2 under Snyder’s watch.
But he doesn’t deserve all of the blame.
When push comes to shove, a head coach is hired to do the job of winning games and reaching the playoffs. We’ll give Norv Turner a pass because he inherited Snyder. And Terry Robiskie and Bill Callahan were stop-gap measures.
However, Marty Schottenheimer, Steve Spurrier, Joe Gibbs, Jim Zorn, Mike Shanahan, Jay Gruden, Bill Callahan, and Ron Rivera get no free pass. When they accepted money, they accepted the baggage. They told Washington fans they could win. Schottenheimer (8-8), Spurrier (12-20), Gibbs (30-34), Zorn (12-20), Shanahan (24-40), Gruden (35-49-1), and Rivera (26-40-1) did not win.
And those records included just enough wins to bring mid-first-round picks into the Commanders’ draft room. Given the team’s history of whiffing even high picks, what could they do with lower ones?
In fairness to Gibbs, the off-field death of Sean Taylor in 2007 impacted his second run as Washington head coach. He retired after that season, and who knows whether he would have stayed or what he might have built if not for the tragedy.
Lack of a franchise quarterback haunts Washington
It’s hard to imagine an organization going as long as the Commanders without a franchise quarterback. Washington had Joe Theismann from the late 1970s through the mid-1980s. Since then? Not one of any lasting nature.
Mark Rypien had one great season (1991) and Washington won the Super Bowl. Rypien was gone by 1994, and the subsequent parade of names might bring laughter. The list includes Heath Shuler, Gus Frerotte, Tony Banks, Shane Matthews, Patrick Ramsey, Mark Brunell, Jason Campbell, Robert Griffin III, Kirk Cousins, Alex Smith, Carson Wentz, and Taylor Heinicke.
Now it’s fair to point out Griffin III might have been something if he stayed healthy. But that’s part of the game, too. And Cousins is probably a franchise quarterback now, but the tag became reality in Minnesota, not Washington.
Yes, Washington fans can hope their new quarterback, Jayden Daniels, is the man. It’s a good pick based on the evidence available now. And that’s how draft picks should be made: the best pick based on the best evidence.
And if Quinn is going to conquer the Commanders’ challenge, Daniels has to be “that guy” and soon — at least by the end of 2025.
When did the Commanders last stand as a legitimate Super Bowl contender?
The year was 1992. The defending Super Bowl champion, Washington made the playoffs and whipped Minnesota, 24-7. But Steve Young and the 49ers banished Washington from the playoffs in a 20-13 decision.
The Dallas dynasty began that season, and Washington has not recovered.
History is what it is, but it has a way of looming over an organization — especially in football for some reason.
Quinn not only has to be rebuild a substandard roster, especially on the defensive side of the ball, but he must also overcome the gloom that settled over Washington football in the early 1990s and hasn’t left since. It may be the world’s longest cold front.
Another issue for Quinn
Washington not only has roster talent and depth issues, the Commanders also have a skeptical fan base. And if you think that doesn’t matter, you may not be paying enough attention.
When considering the fan base, include the media. The folks who cover the team want their stories to be popular. There are two ways this occurs. One is, the team wins games and people like reading or seeing the positive reports. The other way is to pile on when the team loses. Fans are frustrated and angry and they want everybody in sight to be held accountable.
These things are influenced by expectations, which can help or hurt a franchise. The general atmosphere around Kansas City is an expectation to win. And the Chiefs have thrived. But sometimes over-expectations can hurt a franchise, as witnessed in Dallas.
The bottom lines for the Commanders are self-fulfilling expectations. Washington has been mediocre for so long, the fans will expect failure even if things go well. Instead of being excited about the prospects of a great season, they’re waiting for the letdown.
This mindset can only be changed by confidence in a head coach. Quinn is uniquely qualified for this role because he’s been to the mountaintop. Granted he planted a flag and had to be told to remove it. But still, if Quinn can get the Commanders going in the right direction, he’s the guy who can restore the shine of a once-proud franchise.
He just needs a lot of elbow grease to erase all of those historical stains.
