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ESPN
How the Commanders engineered their stunning turnaround
QUINN’S DAILY TEAM meetings are an event in Washington.
The uber-positive, ultra-personable first-year Commanders coach who’s as recognizable for his backward cap as his dominating defenses enters the room with music blaring from a speaker in front of the room. The 15-20 minutes that follow are a fast-paced mixture of connection, information, inspiration and, oftentimes, laughs for players and coaches alike.
In the spirit of collaboration, Quinn typically doesn’t do all of the talking. He will often have his assistants present to the team — which is a rarity in the NFL. One week, quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard presented cutups of plays, another week it was special teams coach Larry Izzo. Quinn is likely to ask anyone in the room for their input. He’ll even crack jokes to get a point across.
Veteran tight end Zach Ertz called Quinn the “best he’s been around” when it comes to messaging. Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota said these meetings get them ready to go for the week. He also said it helps that players can be themselves.
“Sometimes, at least team meetings that I’ve been a part of, you are on eggshells. How’s the head coach going to react to certain things or is he going to pull up tape and show maybe me in a bad light?” Mariota said. “But for [Quinn], it’s very much just like we’re all family. … That type of easiness really allows guys to just enjoy this.”
Then there are the meetings the night before games. Quinn invites a special guest to address the team. They’ve had speakers such as Johnson; Olympic swimming legend Michael Phelps; ESPN studio host Scott Van Pelt, a Maryland native and noted Commanders fan; and former Golden State general manager Bob Myers, who is also an advisor for the Commanders — in hopes of bringing the team together and motivating them for the game ahead.
Wagner will address the team whenever necessary — as he did at the start of the practice week following three consecutive losses (the Commanders beat the Tennessee Titans 42-19 four days later). Teammates and coaches say he sits next to Daniels in team meetings and acts like an older brother — teasing him about his NBA opinions or basketball prowess.
He also leads by example. Defensive coordinator Joe Whitt said on the players’ day off, Wagner is at the facility as long as the coaches, watching film.
“That’s what makes him special, and that’s why he’s going to have that [Hall of Fame] jacket on here when he gets finished playing,” Whitt said of Wagner, an 11-time All-Pro, earlier this season.
Washington Times
LOVERRO: Dr. Quinn’s medicine show has been a miracle cure for ailing franchise
Recalibration is simply the act of calibrating something again. But what Quinn has done is calibrate something again that was ancient, something that happened in the 20th century with this franchise — pride and success.
If that is Quinn’s idea of recalibration, he should consider marketing it. Start a website. Go on Dr. Phil. Open up Dan Quinn Recalibration Clinics around the country. He would put Tony Robbins and his self-help empire out of business.
This, of course, may be how Quinn walks through life. He may be chronically positive. But the results are the stuff of dreams, because what he took over when he came to Washington was the stuff of nightmares, a shameful, embarrassing organization with new owners trying to find a way to climb out of the grave that Dan Snyder had dug for football in Washington, dragging one of the greatest fan bases in the league into tomb with him.
I’ve seen coaches ruin talent, so Quinn and his staff get credit for nurturing Daniels’ talent and connecting it throughout the locker room.
The Guardian
Jayden Daniels is perfectly suited to give the No 1 seed Lions a nasty shock
The quarterback may be a rookie but he doesn’t play like one. And his skillset could well help the Commanders spring a surprise in Detroit on Saturday
As a passer, Daniels was able to foil the Bucs’ frequent pressures because he’s an evolutionary reader of defenses pre-snap, and everything that happens in the play comes from his own understanding. Daniels’ second passing attempt of the game, a 35-yard completion to Terry McLaurin, was a perfect example. Tampa Bay’s defense had a complex blitz prepared for him. Daniels recognized it all, adjusted for the pressure, and eased one of his beautiful downfield throws as if he was relaxing with a backyard game.
Daniels was pressured on 15 of his 40 dropbacks, and he completed seven of 12 passes under pressure for 97 yards, both of his touchdown passes, and a passer rating of 123.1.
The most crucial play…was his four-yard run on third-and-two from the Tampa Bay 19-yard line with 55 seconds left. The game was tied 20-20, and the first down was crucial because the Commanders wanted to run the clock down before kicking a game-winning field goal. Tampa Bay defensive lineman Calijah Kancey actually did a marvelous job of crashing through Washington’s offensive line to create the potential for a negative play, but after a wicked counter fake handoff to running back Brian Robinson. Daniels was able to escape Kancey’s grasp, and all Kancey got out of it was Daniels’ towel … and a full head of frustration.
Overall, the Commanders converted eight of their 15 third-down attempts, and three of their five fourth-down attempts. And Daniels was at the heart of it all.
Simply put, there’s no one way to stop Jayden Daniels on a regular basis, and the Lions will have to adjust their approach to avoid further proof of that fact.
On Saturday, we’ll see once again just how much of a difference Daniels can make. It won’t be your ordinary gameplan against a rookie quarterback. Because Daniels has already passed that bar.
Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)
Evaluating the Commanders offensive line vs Tampa Bay
Breaking down the performance of the Commanders OL vs the Bucs
We’ll start with one of the big positives up front and that is center Tyler Biadasz. Biadasz has been playing hurt for much of the season and you could see him with a slight limp after certain plays like screens and such, so clearly he’s not 100% healthy. But despite that, Biadasz fought incredibly hard in this game and made some big blocks in very tough situations. As the center, he’s often the man tasked with helping others with stunts. From the very first play, he was ready to help his linemates.
This was the Commanders opening play of the game. The Bucs line up nose tackle Vita Vea in the A gap between Tyler Biadasz and left guard Nick Allegretti. They also have defensive tackle Logan Hall outside of Allegretti and defensive Calijah Kancey outside of right guard Sam Cosmi. In an ideal world, Biadasz would be able to help Cosmi on Kancey because Kancey has been one of the Bucs better defensive lineman this year, but with Vea and Hall on the left side, Biadasz has to leave Cosmi one-on-one and work to the left side. The alignment is one thing, but the Bucs add in a stunt, with Vea rushing up the field into Allegretti’s path while Hall loops around behind him to work back inside.
At the snap, Biadasz works to Vea while Allegretti tries to fan out to Hall. After just one step, it becomes pretty clear that Hall is looping back inside and Allegretti needs to pick up Vea to allow Biadasz to slide over and pick up the stunt. However, Allegretti gets himself in a bad position, meaning Biadasz can’t pass off Vea cleanly. Biadasz stays engaged in the block with Vea as Allegretti gets completely turned around, but somehow Biadasz also manages to work inside and get a hand on Hall, preventing him from bursting through the line of scrimmage. This buys Jayden Daniels some time, but unfortunately Cosmi loses his block on Kancey and Daniels has to throw the ball away to avoid taking a sack.
Teams have targeted Allegretti with stunts like that lately and he hasn’t always responded well, which is why the Bucs opened up with that look. Fortunately, Biadasz was able to bail him out of trouble with a fantastic effort on two defenders at the same time, including one of the biggest defensive lineman in football in Vita Vea. Vea is a tough block for any lineman and typically requires two sets of hands on him, but Biadasz managed to handle him one-on-one in a lot of situations, even with bad leverage.
Commanders.com
Practice notes | Commanders looking forward to fight with Lions’ defense
At first glance, it looks like the Lions’ defense is in position to be had against the Commanders. Thirteen defensive players are on either Injured Reserve or the Non-Football Illness list. They were 20th in yards allowed per game and gave up the third most passing yards during the regular season. All that points to the Commanders being able to match the Lions point-for-point, right?
The reality is that it’s not that simple, and the Commanders aren’t viewing it that way. Despite injuries to key players like Aidan Hutchinson, the Lions have given up the seventh fewest points per game and held opponents to 14 points or less seven times. They have 16 interceptions — tied for the fourth most in the league — and given up the fewest third-down conversions by 12 attempts. The Commanders’ offense will be in for a fight on Saturday, and they know it.
Granted, they’ve struggled against the league’s best offenses, allowing an average of 28.2 points against the likes of the Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers, all of which had top 10 units in the regular season, but they have consistently come through with key stops when the team needed them.
Perhaps the best example of that came in the season finale against the Minnesota Vikings, who could have taken the No. 1 seed in the playoffs with a win. They held the Vikings to 3-of-13 on third down and, more importantly, out of the end zone on four red zone trips. They were backed up inside the 5-yard line on two of those drives but forced two fourth-down incompletions from Sam Darnold to get a turnover on downs.
Commanders.com
Commanders vs. Lions preview | A Divisional showdown in Motown
- The Commanders are 3-0 against the Lions in the playoffs. They have never played the Lions on the road in the postseason.
- Washington is looking for its first win against the Lions since the 2019 regular season, when Dwayne Haskins led a 19-16 victory at home.
- Washington has not beaten the Lions on the road since 2008.
- Washington’s first matchup with the Lions came in 1932, when Washington was known as the Boston Braves and Detroit was known as the Portsmouth Spartans.
- Washington has a 28-16 all-time record against the Lions.
Upcoming opponent
Pride of Detroit
Commanders could give Lions an opportunity they’ve rarely had all year
[T]he Detroit Lions only had 13 kick returns all season, opting to kneel down just about every time the ball landed in the end zone.
That could possibly change this week.
The Washington Commanders—Detroit’s opponent in Saturday’s Divisional Round playoff game—stand in defiance as one of the few kickoff teams who have not been afraid to play coverage. In total, they’ve allowed 73 kick returns this season—16 more than the second-closest team. While the Commanders have allowed two kick return touchdowns this year—oddly both against the Cowboys in Week 12 and one of those being an onside kick—Washington still ranks ninth in kick return average allowed, ceding just 26.5 yards per return. They’ve also recovered two fumbles on kickoffs, more than any other team.
Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp has a ton of respect for the Commanders’ special teams unit. According to his own dataset, they’re the best unit in the NFL across all phases of special teams.
“According to my metrics, they’re the best in the NFL, this Washington team, on special teams,” Fipp said. “These guys are really good. They do a great job really in all phases, punt, punt return, kickoff, kickoff return. Their special teams coordinator is a guy that I respect a lot, both personally and professionally, Larry Izzo.”
The opportunity lines up nicely for Detroit, as their primary returner and second-team All-Pro, Kalif Raymond, returned to the lineup last game after a short stint on injured reserve with a foot injury. While Raymond is at his best as a punt returner, he also gives the Lions’ kick return team a shot in the arm.
Though it’s a small sample size, the Lions rank second in the NFL in kick return average (31.4). So we’ll see if Washington reverses course on Saturday night.
Pride of Detroit
How will the Detroit Lions attack, contain Jayden Daniels?
The Lions are no stranger to mobile quarterbacks. Their pass rushing style—maintaining disciplined rushing lanes and crushing the pocket—are focused on containing exactly the type of threat Daniels offers.
But Detroit also likes to get super aggressive on defense, particularly in the wake of all their defensive injuries. Per NFL Pro, Detroit has the second-highest blitz percentage in the NFL, at a 37.1 percent rate. Unfortunately for the Lions, Daniels has been masterful against the blitz this year. He’s actually been more efficient against the blitz than when not blitz.
(Stats from NFL Pro)
Daniels vs. the blitz: 101-of-154 for 1,282 yards, 12 TDs, 1 INT, 114.7 passer rating (7th), +0.25 EPA/dropback (fourth)
Daniels vs. no blitz: 230-of-326 for 2,286 yards, 13 TDs, 8 INTs, 93.2 passer rating (16th), +0.07 EPA/dropback (12th)
So does that mean the Lions should change their strategy this week? Will they dial back the blitz and drop eight into coverage? Will they use a spy, and, if so, who would it be? And do the Lions have a big enough advantage against a mediocre Commanders offensive line?
Podcasts & videos
NFL Playoffs Round 2 Preview vs Detroit Lions | Command Center Podcast | Washington Commanders | NFL
On video with @RealBramW on what continues to be a magical season. Can’t put a limit on what this team can accomplish thanks to Jayden Daniels. No team wants to see him with the ball late in a close game. @ESPNRichmond https://t.co/De8fVMPxBC
— John Keim (@john_keim) January 15, 2025
Jay Gruden was fantastic on the show in breaking down the Commanders’ win in TB. He also had some great insight on why they drafted McLaurin when he was HC and why he thinks Jayden Daniels has been the best QB in the NFL over the last several weeks. https://t.co/vNRAAukB6f.
— Grant Paulsen (@granthpaulsen) January 15, 2025
Commanders vs Lions Playoff Preview | Jay Gruden & Colt McCoy
Santana Moss: “The Commanders Don’t Care Who They Play” | Grant & Danny
Commanders-Buccaneers Aftermath; Lions preview | Trap or Dive Podcast
NFC East links
Pro Football Talk
Eli Manning has a complicated case as first-ballot Hall of Famer
Complicating Eli’s case are recent changes to the voting. After the class of 15 modern-day finalists is whittled to 10 and then 7, there’s no longer an up-or-down vote on each one, with an 80-percent “yes” vote needed. Instead, the voters pick five of the seven, and only those that get at least 80 percent of the vote are enshrined. That means 40 of the 49 had to include Eli on their list of five candidates from the seven finalists.
NFL league links
Articles
Pro Football Talk
Ravens claim Diontae Johnson, who is ineligible to play this postseason
The Ravens claimed Johnson today after he was placed on waivers by the Texans yesterday. But under NFL rules, Johnson is ineligible to play for the rest of the postseason and doesn’t officially go on the Ravens’ roster until after the Super Bowl. And Johnson becomes a free agent in March, so he’s really not going to be part of the Ravens in any meaningful sense.
So why claim Johnson? From the Ravens’ standpoint, it likely has to do with compensatory picks. If Johnson signs with another team in free agency, he’ll count as a player the Ravens lost toward the compensatory pick formula, which awards picks to teams that lose more players than they sign. So perhaps Johnson’s contract with some other team will result in the Ravens getting a late-round compensatory pick in 2026.