Tag: Joe Gibbs

Commanders Dan Quinn joined some elite company with Week 15 win

Dan Quinn did something only one other coach in Washington franchise history has done.

Dan Quinn is already in rare company.

With the 20-19 Commanders’ win over the Saints in Week 14, Dan Quinn reached his ninth win of the season.

The franchise has been led so poorly from the top that this 2024 season is the first nine-win season since Jay Gruden was the head coach, Kirk Cousins was the starting quarterback, and Sean McVay was the offensive coordinator in 2015. The only current player from that 2015 season was punter Tress Way.

Also, with that ninth win of the season, Quinn becomes only the second Washington head coach to have won nine games in his first NFL season with the franchise.

George Allen came to Washington in 1971, taking over a team that had finished 6-8 in 1970. Allen made numerous trades in the offseason but lost his starting quarterback, Sonny Jurgensen, to a broken shoulder in the preseason and Charley Taylor in the fifth game to a broken ankle. Yet the Redskins finished 9-4-1 and were the fourth and final team to make the NFC playoffs before losing in the first round to the NFC West champ 49ers in San Francisco 24-20.

The great Joe Gibbs came to Washington in 1981, taking over a team that was 6-10 in 1980. Gibbs lost his first five games and has often told of how then-owner Jack Kent Cooke asked to meet with Gibbs. Gibbs has commented that he thought he might get fired before winning even a single game.

Gibbs wasn’t fired, but he did manage to get the team to play his brand of football. They won eight of their final 11 games, finishing the season at 8-8.

Marty Schottenheimer came to Washington to succeed Norv Turner, whom owner Daniel Snyder had fired during the 2000 season in which the Redskins finished 8-8.

Schottenheimer inherited Jeff George as his starting quarterback, whom Snyder had brought to the team. Marty’s 2001 team started miserably, so miserably George was not only benched, he was released. The Redskins started 0-5, finished strongly at 8-8. But Snyder fired Schottenheimer.

How many games did Boston / Washington first-year head coaches win in their inaugural seasons?

  • 2020 Ron Rivera 7-9
  • 2014 Jay Gruden 4-12
  • 2010 Mike Shanahan 6-10
  • 2008 Jim Zorn 8-8
  • 2004 Joe Gibbs (2.0) 6-10
  • 2002 Steve Spurrier 7-9
  • 2001 Marty Schottenheimer 8-8
  • 1994 Norv Turner 3-13
  • 1993 Richie Petitbon 4-12
  • 1981 Joe Gibbs (1.0) 8-8
  • 1978 Jack Pardee 8-8
  • 1971 George Allen 9-4-1
  • 1970 Bill Austin 6-8
  • 1969 Vince Lombardi 7-5-2
  • 1966 Otto Graham 7-7
  • 1961 Bill McPeak 1-12-1
  • 1959 Mike Nixon 3-9
  • 1954 Joe Kuharich 3-9
  • 1952 Curly Lambeau 4-8
  • 1950 Herman Ball 3-9
  • 1946 Turk Edwards 5-5-1
  • 1944 Dudley DeGroot 6-3-1
  • 1943 Dutch Bergman  6-3-1
  • 1936 Ray Flaherty 7-5
  • 1935 Eddie Casey 2-8-1
  • 1933 Lone Star Dietz 5-5-2
  • 1932 Lud Wray 4-4-2

Commanders’ offense reminding some of the 1991 team

The current Commanders are doing things that hasn’t been done since the last Super Bowl team.

This Commanders team has accomplished something Washington hasn’t achieved in 33 seasons.

This dates back to pre-Daniel Snyder era teams, all the way back to Jack Kent Cooke being the owner, Joe Gibbs still being the coach, and Mark Rypien being the starting quarterback.

In 1991 the Washington Redskins were Super Bowl XXVI champions, having defeated the Buffalo Bills 37-24 after having led 37-10. This year’s 2024 team has no guarantees to match that accomplishment. However, this year’s team has scored 40+ points three times, and that 1991 Super Bowl champion team last accomplished that.

Led by quarterback Jayden Daniels, the Commanders have scored 40+ points at the Cardinals (42-14), against the Panthers (40-7), and the Titans (42-19).

The Commanders have converted 71 of 161 3rd down attempts for 44.1 percent. They have done quite well on fourth downs, as Washington has converted 13 of 15 plays for 86.7 percent. The Commanders offense has executed well in the red zone, scoring touchdowns 60 percent of the time on 33 of 55 possessions.

The 1991 team actually accomplished the 40+ points feat four times in the regular season: against the Lions (45-0), against the Browns (42-17), against the Falcons (56-17), and at the Steelers (41-14) and then also in their NFC Championship game win over the Lions (41-10).

Yes, this year’s offense has often been fun to watch. In fact, the Commanders have scored 30+ points in five games already this regular season: at the Bengals (38-33), at the Cardinals (42-14), against the Browns (34-13), against the Panthers (40-7), and the Titans (42-19).

 

Jay-Z, Joe Gibbs take in Cowboys-Commanders NFC East clash

Big-name celebs were at the Dallas Cowboys-Washington Commanders game

The Kansas City Chiefs have Taylor Swift at home games. The Washington Commanders had Jay-Z in attendance on Sunday when they played the Dallas Cowboys.

Former Washington coach Joe Gibbs was also on hand.

Commanders’ Dan Quinn maintaining a proper perspective after huge win

Dan Quinn on how the highs and lows of a season can be dangerous.

Life is full of ups and downs, mountains and valleys.

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has lived long enough (age 54) and coached long enough in the NFL to know this is true in the NFL as well.

Consequently, after a night’s sleep following Washington’s thrilling 38-33 victory in Cincinnati, Quinn was level-headed and maintained a proper perspective Tuesday when talking with the media.

“Roller coasters are as fun as hell, but you can’t ride the highs and lows because both can be equally dangerous,” began Quinn.

He’s absolutely correct. I recall Washington in 1978 started 6-0; it was exciting. But it finished 8-8. On the other side of the coin, I recall the 1981 Joe Gibbs first season began dreadfully at 0-5. However, they rebounded to finish 8-8. Twenty years later, Marty Schottenheimer’s Redskins team also began 0-5 and also finished 8-8.

Quinn spoke of how the team traveled from Cincinnati to Arizona rather than returning home to Ashburn. He knows the win was a big one. He knows the temptations to get distracted, forgetting what you did to win a big game. “To me, it worked out perfectly to stay in this pocket, no outside voices of highs or lows. Our pocket is all about proving it, about competing, about improvement.”

He spoke of the team being connected while staying in Arizona in preparation for the Week 4 contest at the Cardinals. Yet the world is a different place today. Each player has his phone and will see stories about how great they were last night.

Dan Quinn has his work cut out for him this week, and he’s already displaying he is quite aware and wants to work hard to avoid a pitfall against the Cardinals.

Kevin Durant predicts a touchdown on Jayden Daniels’ first NFL play

Kevin Durant sees big things for Jayden Daniels on his first NFL play.

NBA superstar Kevin Durant is a massive fan of the Washington Commanders. Growing up in Prince George’s County, Maryland, Durant has always stayed with his favorite team through good times and bad.

These days, there is a lot of excitement surrounding the Commanders under new owner Josh Harris. This entire offseason has been fun for Washington fans, beginning with general manager Adam Peters’ hiring in January.

Washington’s most notable offseason addition was rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. Durant, like most fans, is fired up about Daniels.

On Friday, Durant was a guest on “Up & Adams” with Kay Adams, discussing the Commanders. Adams asked Durant to predict Daniels’ first play in his NFL debut on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“Play action, hit the post, Terry McLaurin for six,” Durant said. Adams said she wanted to see a similar result for Daniels on his first play.

The only other time the Commanders and Buccaneers opened the season was in 2004. That was Joe Gibbs’ first game back with the franchise after 12 years away. Running back Clinton Portis took his first carry in a Washington uniform 64 yards to the house, leading the burgundy and gold to a season-opening win over Tampa Bay.

Can Daniels create similar magic on Sunday?

Voice of Commanders remembers how driven legendary Washington coach Joe Gibbs was

The voice of the Commanders discusses the legendary Joe Gibbs.

Bram Weinstein grew up in the DMV, a big Washington Redskins fan.

Weinstein told John Keim of Ampire Media this week of how he grew up attending games at RFK Stadium, home of the Redskins, and they were one of the three or four best teams in the NFL many seasons.

Joe Gibbs coached Washington from the 1981-1992 seasons, leading them to five NFC Title games, four Super Bowls and winning three Super Bowl championships.

So, when Gibbs returned to coach the Redskins in the 2004 season, there was Weinstein, then an adult, a graduate of American University, and a reporter doing his job covering the Redskins.

Weinstein found Gibbs “to be a genuinely nice person, very giving with his time, with the exception on Fridays, when he turned into ‘Friday Joe.’ The game face came on.”

“He was extremely generous with his time Monday through Thursday then Friday would come along. It was like a light bulb went off. It was like he was ready to go into the ring. He became very short and didn’t have time for you anymore. He was just ready to go, and you could see the competitive nature.”

Weinstein also notes that Gibbs was very good at getting to know the people in the media and giving them some time to do their jobs. However, when it was time to double down and just work, he says, Gibbs took it as seriously as anyone I ever saw. You saw the competitive fire literally come out of him.”

During Gibbs’ second tenure, Weinstein says, “You could see why it burned him out the first time. It meant so much; his emotions went to such a place the results ate at him.”

Indeed in nine of his twelve seasons in his 1.0 tenure, the Redskins won over .600 of their games. In those twelve seasons, only one was a losing season, and that was a 7-9 1988 season.

“That’s who he was, and that’s probably why he was so successful. He knew how to handle personalities, how to delegate authority, knew how to motivate. When Sundays rolled around, it was dead serious to him.”

“I think that is why these guys played for him the way they did, the two times they played for him.”

Clinton Portis outspoken on his time in Washington

He is still not a fan of Jim Zorn. And who was his favorite QB?

Clinton Portis was a beast of a running back.

Portis, a Redskins running back for seven seasons, started 83 of his 84 games and rushed for 6,824 yards, including 46 rushing touchdowns and 345 rushing first downs.

Portis was a more than capable receiver out of the backfield, catching 176 receptions for 1,340 yards (7.6). Even more noticeable was the spirit and intensity with which Portis was a blocker in the passing game. He was truly an all-around, dependable, and fierce NFL running back.

Portis appeared on the “Grant and Danny” show (106.7 The Fan) Thursday and made some striking remarks reminiscing on his playing days with the Redskins (2004-2010).

Portis said in Washington, he had five offensive coordinators in his seven seasons, who all wanted to do something different. That’s understandable, as Portis did have four offensive coordinators (Don Breaux, Al Saunders, Sherman Smith and Kyle Shanahan).

But Portis then claimed he “might have played for nine or ten quarterbacks.”  Actually it was only six (Patrick Ramsey, Mark Brunell, Jason Campbell, Todd Collins, Donovan McNabb, Rex Grossman).

The former Washington running back said, “I left the DMV so upset because I felt like for years I was the savior, and I turned into the problem. That left a bitter taste in my mouth before I came back to broadcast, where I fell in love with the city.”

When Grant Paulsen asked Portis who his favorite Washington quarterback to play with was, Portis actually had no answer, pausing and then saying, “That’s crazy.”

Paulsen then supplied him with names of quarterbacks, to which Portis replied, “But I think Donovan (McNabb) had something going on. It was different. He was at the end.”

Indeed, McNabb did have some career lows that 2009 season in Washington, as his TD rate and QBR were his lowest, and his interception rate was his highest. He was traded after only one season to Minnesota and released during his lone season with the Vikings, never playing again.

Back to Portis’ favorite quarterback in Washington. He asked who they got from Kansas City. Grant Paulsen had to provide Portis with the name: Todd Collins. Portis then said Collins was his favorite. How strange is it that Collins was his favorite, yet he didn’t remember his name?

Portis then strangely blamed the coaches for Jason Campbell’s play, saying they told him where to throw it and then blamed Campbell. When pressed which coach, Portis quickly responded, “Of course, I am not talking about Gibbs. I love Coach Gibbs, I love Coach Shanahan.”

Again, on Campbell, “Jason didn’t have that fair chance to go out and be a ball player,” added Portis. However, many fans might recall Campbell often did successfully move the Redskins up and down the field, only to then struggle often inside the red zone.

Following his four seasons with the Redskins, Campbell continued to have his struggles, never catching on nor finding success in any of his other NFL stops with the Raiders, Bears, Browns, and Bengals.

Not to be overlooked is Portis rushed for an amazing 1,508 and 1,591 in his first two seasons in the NFL in Denver, rushing for 29 touchdowns and leading the NFL by averaging 5.5 yards a rushing attempt. Portis was a stud, no doubt.

Remember the last time Washington opened the season against the Buccaneers?

Remembering the last time Washington opened a season vs. the Buccaneers. What a time.

If one game could’ve defined an era, the opening game of the 2004 season for the then-Washington Redskins would’ve kicked off another 1980s-like run.

It was the first game in legendary head coach Joe Gibbs’ return to the sidelines for Washington after 12 years away. On the first play from scrimmage, new running back Clinton Portis takes the Mark Brunell handoff and scampers 64 yards untouched for the touchdown.

FedEx Field came unglued. Message boards — yes, they existed long before Twitter and Facebook — were proclaiming a return to prominence for the struggling franchise. The beloved hero was back to fix his franchise, while the new star showed why Gibbs traded for him.

The Commanders remembered that play via “Touchdown Tuesday” on X.

Washington would go on to win the game, 16-10, and Portis rushed for 148 yards. However, the Redskins would lose their next four games and finished the season with a 6-10 mark. That wasn’t bad, considering Washington had won just five games the year before Gibbs and Portis arrived.

This year, the Commanders open the 2024 NFL season vs. Tampa Bay. Only this time, it’s on the road. But much like 2004, the 2024 opener will feature some long-awaited debuts for Washington: Head coach Dan Quinn and quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Can Quinn and Daniels replicate that 2004 magic in September?

The Bucs and Washington have had some memorable games over the past 20 years, such as the controversial Mike Alstott call that gave the Bucs a one-point win (2005), Washington’s playoff win two months later, or the “You Like That” game, but the 2004 season opener will always be remembered fondly by Washington fans.

Former Washington DT Kedric Golston discusses taking over one of Virginia’s top HS programs

The longtime for Washington DT talks taking over one of Virginia’s top HS programs.

Kedric Golston was Mr. Washington. The legendary Joe Gibbs selected him in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL draft. Golston spent all 11 of his professional seasons in the burgundy and gold. He survived multiple head coaches, general managers, defensive coordinators, and defensive line coaches.

It wasn’t as if Golston was a star. He played in 142 NFL games with 53 starts, finishing with 224 career tackles and seven sacks. Golston was mainly a rotational player and special-teams standout. But Golston was a beloved leader in the locker room and on the field.

After retiring, Golston became a successful businessman in the DMV. He also got the coaching bug. After becoming a high school assistant, Golston was named the new head coach at Stone Bridge High School in Ashburn earlier this month — mere minutes from Commanders’ headquarters. Stone Bridge is one of the top football programs in the state of Virginia and the alma mater of Washington defensive tackle Jonathan Allen.

In a recent interview with Scott Abraham of ABC 7 in Washington, D.C., Golston spoke of his new job.

“Obviously, I’ve grown, I think there’s a couple of things you have control over,” Golston said when asked how the differences between him as a player and a coach.

“You don’t have control over your God-given athletic ability. But you can control your attitude and your effort. Some people start on third base; some people start on first base. But ultimately, it’s can each one of my players reach their ceiling and continue to improve day in and day out.”

Stone Bridge opened in 2000 and has 23 consecutive winning seasons, including three state championships.

 

Joe Gibbs reveals shocking item about NASCAR calling the Coca-Cola 600

Joe Gibbs revealed a shocking detail about NASCAR calling the 2024 Coca-Cola 600. What did Gibbs say about calling the Crown Jewel event?

[autotag]Joe Gibbs[/autotag] had luck on his side during the 2024 Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday night. Gibbs saw Christopher Bell win NASCAR’s “longest” race of the year after the sport called off track drying efforts at 11:30 p.m. ET. According to the release, the high humidity and possible start time of 1:00 a.m. ET was far too much for NASCAR to overcome.

However, Gibbs thought NASCAR was going back to racing on Sunday night. During his post-race press conference at Charlotte, Gibbs talked about the surprise of NASCAR calling the event, putting Bell and the No. 20 team in victory lane.

“I think, too, for me, I was in the motor home, and I was told that they’re going to call the drivers in 15 minutes, so I got my jacket on, I was going out the door,” Gibbs said. “But you’re never quite sure, too. I’d be willing to bet on the part of the track there was either weeping and a lot of things — that was a heavy rain, and I’d be willing to bet they reached the conclusion they weren’t going to be able to get it dry.”

Bell’s crew chief, Adam Stevens, was also surprised that NASCAR called the Coca-Cola 600. Yet, Gibbs’ comments are very interesting. Was NASCAR about to call for drivers to return to their cars before it called the Coca-Cola 600? Either way, Bell and Joe Gibbs Racing won one of NASCAR’s Crown Jewel events, and nothing can take away that achievement.

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