TRANSCRIPT 🔗
riverside could dan quinn be fired during the season josh upton's studio: Yeah. Welcome in to the Washington Football Podcast. I'm your host, Josh Upton. No need to go over what we're gonna talk about on today's show, the 27-27 tie that for many in the Washington locker room and for Dan Quinn today feels like a loss. We'll go over kind of what Dan Quinn and the players have had to say in the aftermath of what is truly. and a class of its own as far as clock mismanagement. it was a hurt locker room yesterday after the tie in a game that Washington was in control of the entire way. Until, you know, all of a sudden and over time it felt like they were actually gonna lose the game for a second. They forced a turnover, the defense, which has been saying under Dan Quinn for years. that they need to produce the ball has finally started to do that. They come up with a huge turnover and overtime the offense gets down into field goal range and then bungles the end of the game. And they don't get a try at a field goal. And the Giants are celebrating like they've won. And the commanders are slamming their headsets and kicking pylons and leaving the field like they lost. So just kind of interesting both Sides of that coin in a game where each team probably thought for at least a moment in time that they were going to win. And in the end, there are no winners. I saw some people joking today. You know, the NFC East finished the week with zero wins, even though two teams played each other. If you're this is our second week on YouTube, so if you're new to the show, welcome. I've been doing this for a couple years. You can also find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts. but it's good to be doing video, good to be on YouTube. sad day. We'll try not to shed any tears in this video. Let's talk about the Dan Quinn situation. Obviously, a lot of people calling for his job today. He was even asked, you know, he was asked a lot of questions about his job security and if he pays attention to outside noise. You know, and he says that he he kind of does, which we already know, you know, from talking about it last week during his press conferences. He was calling out the fact that people were making note of the fact that he always says into that space in his press conference and talking about people coming back from injuries and all that. So we know that he has been paying attention. And there have certainly been calls for his job throughout the start of this season. And it's Been a crazy start to the season. It has been mismanaged game after mismanaged game. And now it kind of comes to a head in what we saw at the end of the game yesterday, which feels like on its own w with the way that things have gone for the last season and a quarter essentially for Washington and Dan Quinn, like that is a firable offense. The way that that game ended yesterday. But you know, you could not blame anybody. I mean, even Magic Johnson is tweeting about how horrible it was. So you wouldn't blame anybody in ownership or Adam Peters, you know, for wanting to make a change. Dan Quinn also said today that he talks to Josh Harris often. they have a good relationship, but this This is bigger than than a good relationship. So the tricky thing, you know, so to start, basically the thinking is that this organization wants to be a respectable organization. Like they want to carry themselves the right way. You know, they probably won't make a change until after the season. It feels like and I will I'll talk about the tie and probably say some things. That some of you guys aren't gonna like today. But it feels like Dan Quinn is going this is gonna be his final season in Washington. It is not too late for them to turn this around. And Jaden played yesterday, stayed healthy, played well. so there's it's not too late for them to turn this around. But again, as I've said before. They are losing themselves games. And so it's their own mistakes that are costing them opportunities to win. And we've seen that this season. We've seen it into last season. They have young coordinators who like I will give them some grace. You would expect some bumps in the road. But you know, that that might last for the the season. Like that could end up lasting a long time, letting Durante Jones and David Blau grow into their roles. so that could take time. Like it's hard to imagine with what they've shown so far that they're gonna get this thing turned around. And if they don't, I would imagine that this is Dan Quinn's final season in Washington. as far as firing him right now, you know, I know a lot of people want blood today. After what they saw on the field yesterday. And I do think, you know, although the organization I think is going to want to be patient and wait till the end of the year, you can make a case for why this needs to happen right now. Because, just as we said, it's not too late for them to turn this thing around. They're one, three, and one. Their own head coach, Dan Quinn, has said consistently throughout this season, like This I know how good we can be. We are not reaching our potential. So why is that? Who what is holding them back? Who is holding them back? And so if it's the head coach that is causing this team to not reach its potential, I'm sure Adam Peters, you know, with the players that he's drafted over the course of the last three years, first and foremost, being Jaden Daniels, who is now in his third season and hasn't done any winning. outside of his rookie year, like I would think that he would want the the best for those draft picks. For those draft picks to be reaching their potential. For the players that he's signed, for the players that Josh Harris is spending money on to be reaching their potential. And if the head coach is holding them back, it's not too late for them to turn this around. So you could make a change. I do I don't think that that is crazy. And I do think despite them you know, wanting to be patient, there is no reason
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if you be if and this is up to them, I'm not necessarily saying that Dan Quinn should be fired or not, but if they have lost faith in Dan Quinn, which you know, you wouldn't blame them for feeling that way at this point. If they feel like the players have lost faith in Dan Quinn, then it's then they can make a change. Like there's no reason to let him ride out the season. And watch the team struggle and be sloppy and commit penalties and be held back from reaching their potential. The issue with that is I don't know who would coach this team if Dan Quinn was fired. Like who do they have on the staff that could be the head coach of this team? It is a young staff, and that may be some of the reasons that we're in this place right now. I mean, I think David Blau is gonna have a lot to learn from that sequence. Yesterday, how they subbed after the Rashad White run. They let fifty-five seconds. They had they had fifty-five seconds and they let it run out on them with only running one more play. They subbed. There was a motion on the play, the final play where Jaden was sacked. It did not seem like Jaden Daniels knew what was going on. When he went down, he wasn't immediately back up like They were lost and confused. That is definitely Dan Quinn's fault. That is Jaden Daniels' fault. That is David Blau's fault. And so I think David Blau has a lot to learn from that experience. And it doesn't mean that he won't be a good offensive coordinator or that he can't be a head coach at some point down the road. But for everybody who is basically already giving him a head coaching job, like he's he's not ready for that role. Durante Jones has only been a defensive, this is his first time being a defensive coordinator in the NFL. The only other time he was a defensive coordinator, period, was in college. you know, my my one of my first thoughts is Larry Izzo. The special teams unit is always playing hard and is more or less pretty locked in. He doesn't have any experience beyond the role of a special teams coordinator, but they just don't. have anybody else who you'd feel good about being the head coach of this team. So it they're in a tricky spot where like I know people want blood and like what you can't fire Dan Quinn just for the purposes of firing him. I don't know who, you know, it's their job to figure that's that stuff out and you know, be prepared for that contingency if it becomes time to do that. They're gonna play San Francisco and then they're gonna have their bye. So, you know, if you beat San Francisco, you're sitting there at two, three, and one, and you know, maybe you're not feeling so bad. They get the bye week to kind of shake off this weird start, this ugly start to the season, and we'll see where it goes from there. Or, you know, s more sloppiness, more ugliness could show up on their tape and Maybe something changes in the bye week. The bye week becomes a bye bye week. so that's possible, you know, but I don't know who would coach the team.
And but at the same time, like d Dan Quinn is the one saying that this team isn't reaching their potential. So why is that happening? And does a change need to be made in order for them to reach their potential? A couple other I mean again, I think the it is on Dan Quinn and Dan Quinn has said that. Jaden has said that as well. I mean, I don't think they get any credit. Some people they're they Dan Quinn got some hard questions today. And but there are also people that are like patting him on the back for putting the blame on himself. Like what is he supposed to do? Say it was David Blau's fault or say it was Jaden Daniels' fault? It was. Just as much as it was Dan Quinn's, you know, to a certain extent, maybe because Dan Quinn is the head coach and it starts with him, that it is mostly on him, but like you don't get any credit for taking the blame in this case. On the tie, and I'll say this, and I I understand that you don't want to hear this today, but a tie is not a loss. This one hurts because they were in control of the game for the entire time, except for a blip in overtime. And you could say the defense was losing their grip in the fourth quarter. I will want to talk about that as well. You have a two touchdown lead in the fourth quarter. And you're in field goal range for a the would-be game-winning field goal in this game, and you get a tie. Like that hurts. That's why this feels like a loss for Washington and the Giants feel like they won the game. But a tie is not a loss. Like they have got to shake this off. A tie is better than losing. And unfortunately, that's what they ended up with yesterday. But if you can somehow go beat San Francisco, you're two, three, and one, you're heading into your bye. Like a tie is not as bad as a loss. And Dan Quinn was asked today, like, how do you s moments seasons can be defined by moments. How do you not let this moment become a moment that defines the season? And he said, I don't catastrophize things, but so I don't want to make a bigger deal out of it than it needs to be, and I also don't want to minimize it. Like it is bad. And Dan Quinn said consistently, like We are pissed. We're pissed. That was kind of the theme of his press conference today. He also used the word furious. I mean, we have seen he seemed about as in as good a spirits as you could be for what he and they are facing right now. but we have seen him explode the last couple of weeks, losing it on the officials in London, slamming the headset yesterday. The pressure of what They're the pressure is mounting on them because of this start that they've had. And we've seen Dan Quinn start to be a little bit more emotional. You know, I haven't heard him say the word furious about his team since he's been in Washington. And he used that word today. so you know, he's he's saying we got to put this in its proper place, essentially. I'm kind of paraphrasing what he said. But in saying that he doesn't catastrophize things, he also called it a
loss. It is not a loss. They tied. I know that that does not feel good. given the circumstances, like that was a hard as hard a game for me to take in as they've had this season. And there's been some real doozies. Losing losing Jaden in Dallas, having to watch Ethan Kalliak Manis and London just slowly lose that game for three hours. Like there have been some rough games, but that one. Although it was not a loss was hard to watch, but it is not a loss, and they you know, whatever. They can do whatever they need to do. But I do think Dan Quinn was also asked, like, do you have concerns about the players losing faith in you, the coach? And he said no. But I think, you know, I don't know what he what he's supposed to say to that. He said no, and he knows his locker room and they're resilient and all that. But you heard multiple people in the locker room yesterday say ask DQ when they were asked questions about how that sequence played out. So, like, that's the first time we've heard that stuff, too. So, you know, this is a gut punch for them. They cannot. I mean, to Dan Quinn's point about not catastrophizing this, calling it a loss is catastrophizing it. And they have to be very, very serious. about how they fix this and move past it, but they do have to move past it. And so like they cannot get lost in like being sorry for themselves and counting this game as a loss. It isn't. It's a tie. And a tie is better than a loss, no matter how bad it hurts. And on the defense, this defense, this secondary, is still just a mess. Another second half meltdown is This defense is better than the defense last year. They have started to produce the ball. And maybe if the defense is going to continue to struggle, like forcing turnovers can be the difference. And that can save a defense that, you know, isn't great. But their secondary, as soon as a team decides they're just going to throw it, whether they have to, in the Giants case, because of the time left in the game, Or they just decide they're not gonna do it because Washington has been pretty good at stopping the run. Yeah, they're not gonna run it because Washington has been good at stopping the run. As soon as a team decides to throw it, like they move the ball. Like it's no problem. When the Giants had to go get touchdowns, they took to the air and they were able to move the ball at will. Before that, they're sticking to the run and Washington is able to get stops, even in overtime. Like Washington is able to get stops. they forced a turnover. There wasn't a missed field goal, you know, if you can call those stops, I guess. but they were able to slow the Giants offense down at least a little bit. Like it is teens are just gonna decide they don't need to run it against Washington, and then what is Washington gonna do? Their secondary has struggled. They need to get Amos back and see if he's able to help. But I mean some of this You know, I don't know if it's players or plays, but the defense is struggling. And when anybody decides they're gonna throw it, they can and they will be moving the ball. That's it for the show today. It'll be a little bit of a different schedule for the team this week since they play on Monday night football in San Francisco next week. I think the next time we'll hear from Dan Quinn will be on Thursday instead of Wednesday. So I'll be back with an episode on Wednesday. We'll know more about the injury situations. the only injury coming out of the Giants game, Dan Quinn talked about it today. Javante Jean Baptiste heard his peck, so they're waiting for more information on that. So we will see about him. I think we'll hear from Dan Quinn again on Thursday. We'll be back with another episode on Wednesday. We'll talk to you then.