Dan Quinn is ready to make Commanders training camp as stressful as possible for players and coaches, but in the best way
The Commanders are doing everything they can to turn the ship around in 2026 and it all starts in training camp where Dan Quinn has a good plan to ensure the team develops as much as possible.
The Washington Commanders can’t take another step back in 2026 and the best way to make that happen is to ensure every player and coach brings their A-game each day.
That’s why Dan Quinn has been adamant this will be the Commanders’ most competitive training camp since he took over in 2024.
“You’ll find some competition in an everyday sense, and I think that’s one of the very best ways that we’ll get better,” Quinn told reporters Tuesday evening. “Just good-on-good [and] some situations into tomorrow there’ll be a two-point play competition, best out of five, and those are the moments I think you’ll find some game scenarios and situations in every practice. [Such as] two minute and four minute [drills], last plays, setting up field goals…
“… Even a difficult camp can also be like stressful. You know, can we put ourselves in these spots so when we the air gets thin, that we feel like that’s our space, and we’re going to work really hard into that spot? … I feel a hunger from the team, so they’re ready to get into that.”
Quinn’s particular comment about the ability to breathe when the air gets thin really stood out. Because as we all know, it’s hard to simulate game situations in practice and what matters most is what occurs once the lights come on.
As expected, Quinn has a plan to ensure the 2026 version Commanders training camp contains as many game-like scenarios as possible. And he’s not just reserving it for the players – he wants the coaching staff going through the same motions.
And he’s going to accomplish such by doling out unscripted practice sessions in order to gauge just who exactly is where in terms of their respective development.
“It’s not just for the players, that’s also for the staff as well,” said Quinn. “Calling the different down and distances, the personnel groups that you have to put in. So, as much as we can to get game-like, without it being in the game, you want to dig into that space.
“… Having as many of those unscripted as you can, it’s not just for the players to put the stress [on]. It’s for us as the staff as well. And so, that’s why in some of these competitions, I I won’t tell the players or the staff what is going to be. … I want us to have to think quickly on our feet.”
It’s certainly the right strategy to help create the upcoming depth chart hierarchy for the season. And even though it’s cliche, the cream will rise to the top and the Commanders will be far better because of it.