At first glance, one might think Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn wasn’t exactly jumping out of his seat over the pass rush moves that Adam Peters made in free agency.
Quinn was actually fairly quiet on how Adam Peters has handled pass-rush free agency signings.
The good news is, he did not show any signs of panic.
Because the true sentiment of what Quinn was conveying about what Adam Peters orchestrated this offseason was clear, to say the least.
“Amen,” Quinn said at League Meetings in Arizona. “He delivered.”
Peters Was Aggressive in Free Agency
The Commanders didn’t ease into free agency; they aggressively addressed one of their biggest weaknesses and didn’t hesitate. Odafe Oweh is joining after a double-digit sack season, while K’Lavon Chaisson comes over after a statistically productive season of his own.
He spoke about the addition of speed, about disruption in the passing game, and about establishing waves up front as opposed to relying on a single disruptive pass rusher to carry the load. This has been Quinn’s defensive philosophy since his time with the Seattle Seahawks.
“The best teams that I’ve been a part of had waves of players that could apply pressure,” Quinn said. “And we’ll need to be able to do that, and we will.”
Yes, the tone was quiet. Almost too quiet, one could argue.
Oweh and Chaisson Were Key Additions
Adam Peters did not randomly acquire players, hoping one of them would be able to generate a pass rush.
Oweh is the embodiment of what Quinn wants from an edge defender: explosive first step, length, violence, and ability. These are qualities you cannot teach. They must be unlocked.
“He’s still really young,” Peters said about Oweh. “He’s still ascending. He’s got one year to prove it, and I think he’s gonna do really well.”
Chaisson represents a different type of investment, one built upon his potential in Quinn’s system rather than his statistical output of the past. The word “fit” gets thrown around a lot in March, but that’s the key word in this instance. Both players provide speed, athleticism, and options for Quinn.
Next Season Should Look Different
Some coaches are at their best winning press conferences. That’s never been Dan Quinn’s style.
He’s not going to sound like he’s crowning anyone before they can prove their worth. He won’t pound the table in April about how these players are going to revolutionize the defense. Instead, he’s going to talk about depth, about rotation, about competition.
What that really means is, nothing is given. No one gets handouts, even if they’ve earned them financially.
If anything, Quinn’s steady approach should encourage the fanbase more than anything else. It would have been too easy to say “we’ve acquired the final piece to the puzzle.”
Instead, he remained grounded, focusing on the fit as opposed to what players would look like on an Instagram graphic. This usually indicates a coach believes something is going to work.
Dan Quinn is not downplaying the acquisition of players like Oweh and Chaisson; he simply doesn’t feel the need to be shouting from the rooftops about it.
Adam Peters addressed a key weakness, Quinn added players who fit his scheme, and if you get past the calm tone, the message is loud and clear. This pass rush should look drastically different next season.
Main Image: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images