Commanders 'Base Camp' Strategy Entering Bye Week

The Washington Commanders can feel content with their work through the first 13 weeks of the season. Sitting at 8-5 and now on a bye, the Commanders, under new head coach Dan Quinn, have been a surprise packet this year.

In the early stages under the new regime, Washington raced to a 7-2 record before a three-game losing streak halted all of the positive momentum that had been built.

But they steadied the ship with a 42-19 win over the Tennessee Titans before the bye to bring the feel-good vibes back to the locker room.

Quinn's message to his young team when they return after recharging the batteries is simple: The climb to the playoffs begins.

“I would say when I come back, we'll talk about being at base camp,” Quinn said. “We're no longer going to be at the beginning of the mountain, but there is another space to go to, and can we have the discipline just to go to the next step. So where other people want to put three and four steps out there for us, it is literally going to be just this step into New Orleans and not to look ahead weeks down the line, but literally this moment this time.”