The angry mob has taken to the streets of Washington, DC with their pitchforks sharpened and their torches blazing. It is a good thing that Josh Harris has a house in far away Miami, Florida so he is safe from the restless and irritable fanbase. The honeymoon was supposed to last longer than this. Well, welcome to life as the owner of the Washington football franchise, Josh Harris. The honeymoon is over and now you get to deal with the angry mob from the most traumatized fanbase in the NFL. And to think that Harris paid $6 billion for this privilege!
One of the biggest complaints from Commies’ fans is that Dan Quinn is nothing more than Ron Rivera 2.0. Quinn, like Rivera, is a well-respected figure in the NFL. You have to look hard to find any executive or player who will say anything negative about Quinn. This is the same thing that fans were told about Rivera when Rivera was hired to be the new head coach of the Redksins.
Quinn, like Rivera, is an accomplished defensive coordinator. Quinn, like Rivera, has already coached an NFL team before and made it to the Super Bowl once and lost. Quinn is 53 years old. Rivera was 58 years old when the Redskins hired him as their new head coach.
These similarities are obvious. But, how about the coaching resumes for each man?
Rivera was the head coach of the Carolina Panthers for 8 1/2 seasons and finished with a 76-63-1 record. Rivera finished first in the NFC South three times. Rivera finished second in the NFC South two times. Rivera finished third in the NFC South two times. Rivera finished fourth in the NFC South one time.
Rivera had five losing seasons. Rivera’s worst seasons were 6-10 in 2011, 6-10 in 2016, 7-9 in 2012, and 7-9 in 2018. The Panthers were 5-7 in 2019 when Rivera got fired. Rivera made the playoffs four seasons. Rivera went 3-4 in the playoffs. Rivera’s best year was in 2015 when he reached the Super Bowl and lost it.
Dan Quinn was the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons for 5 1/2 seasons and finished with a 43-42 record. Quinn finished first in the NFC South one time. Quinn finished second in the NFC South three times. Quinn finished third in the NFC South one time.
Quinn had two losing seasons. Quinn’s worst seasons were 7-9 in 2018 and 7-9 in 2019. The Falcons were 0-5 in 2020 when Quinn got fired. Quinn was 3-2 in the playoffs. Quinn’s best year was in 2016 when he reached the Super Bowl and lost it.
So, the coaching resumes of Rivera and Quinn are quite similar. Both men made the Super Bowl once. Both men lost their sole Super Bowl appearance. However, one difference is that Rivera had a better record with the Panthers than Quinn had with the Falcons. Also, Rivera had a better record in his final season with the Panthers than Quinn did in his final season with the Falcons.
After reviewing the accomplishments of both coaches, it does look like Quinn is largely Ron Rivera 2.0. It is tough to argue otherwise. It is understandable why the Commies’ fanbase would be crestfallen over Quinn being the new head coach. It makes sense that Commies fans would view Quinn as Rivera 2.0. This is a legitimate comparison and is going to stick until Quinn can prove that he is different during the 2024 season.
Now, what is not in doubt is Quinn’s ability as a defensive coordinator. With the Dallas Cowboys, Quinn’s defense in 2021 was ranked 20th in the league in yards allowed per game (238.2), 16th in run defense (112.8), 7th in opponent’s points per game (21.1), and 1st in takeaways (34). The Cowboys were ranked 1st in DVOA.
In 2022, Quinn’s defense was ranked 12th in yards allowed per game (330.2), ranked 8th in passing defense (200.9), ranked 22nd in run defense (129.3), and 5th in points allowed (20.1), and 1st in takeaways (33). The Cowboys were ranked 7th in DVOA.
In 2023, Quinn’s defense was ranked 5th in yards allowed per game (299.7), ranked 5th in pass defense (187.4), and ranked 16th in run defense (112.4), and 5th in points allowed (18.5), and 12th in takeaways (26). The Cowboys were ranked 4th in DVOA.
Now, let’s look at some positives about hiring Dan Quinn. First, Adam Peters has been widely regarded as the brightest and most coveted candidate for open General Manager positions. The Commies’ fanbase was over the moon with the hiring of Adam Peters. Well, if Peters is as talented as people think he is then the fanbase should trust Peters’ decision to hire Quinn.
Second, Quinn has experience as a head coach. Quinn will not be surprised or struggle with the duties of a head coach. That cannot be said for first-time head coaches. Nobody knows how these coordinators turned head coaches will handle the new duties of being the head man in charge. With Quinn, there should be a much shorter on-ramp since he knows what it takes to be a head coach. Ideally, this will lead to fewer growing pains than when hiring a first-time head coach.
Third, one would hope that Quinn learned from his failures in Atlanta and has grown and is more equipped to be a successful head coach this second time around. This should also lead to Quinn being able to turn around the Commies in a shorter amount of time than a first-time head coach.
Lastly, Quinn will only be the head coach of the Washington Commanders. The structure in place under Harris is clear. Harris is the owner. Adam Peters is in charge of football operations and makes all personnel decisions. Quinn will be the head football coach and report directly to Peters. This is a big difference from Ron Rivera who was in total control of all football and personnel decisions. It can easily be said that Rivera the General Manager consistently let down Rivera the head coach.
Another important difference that should be highlighted is that when Quinn was the head coach of Atlanta, he had heavy control over player personnel. When Quinn was hired by the Falcons, the team announced a change in the front-office structure in January that designated that Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff would report to team owner Arthur Blank separately. Blank said that Dimitroff and Quinn would “collaborate fully” in evaluating and building the roster. Blank said that Quinn would have the bulk of control and final say over the team’s 53-man roster.
This is definitely not the case with the Commies. Peters will retain full control over player personnel and the 53-man roster. Quinn is being hired to just be the head coach. This is a crucial difference and may help Quinn to have more success in Washington than he did in Atlanta.
In the end, the label as Rivera 2.0 will continue to dog Quinn until he has a chance to prove that his tenure with the Washington Football franchise will be different than Rivera’s tenure. That will only happen once the 2024 regular season gets here and fans can see if the product on the field is any better.
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