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How the Commanders can fix their defense this offseason, which requires Dan Quinn to go against everything he believes in
© Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

How the Commanders can fix their defense this offseason, which requires Dan Quinn to go against everything he believes in

Originally posted on A to Z Sports  |  By Josh Taylor  |  Last updated Nov 18, 2025 8:04 AM ET

The Washington Commanders' season went off the rails quickly, and there are many factors to point your fingers at, including injuries and certainly the defense.

The defense is one factor that you can actually control, and it's been a group that's been one of the worst in the league since Week 2, and nothing changed during a historically bad stretch of 21+ point losses. Head coach Dan Quinn finally made the right call when he decided to demote Joe Whitt Jr. and take over as defensive coordinator, but that was just the first move in an overhaul of the defense that needs to happen.

General manager Adam Peters has a lot of work to do on the roster, and so will Quinn as he looks for a new defensive coordinator this offseason. It's a task that will show if Quinn can learn from his prior mistakes and do something he's uncomfortable with.

Dan Quinn needs to do something he doesn't want to do

Now, of course, you won't just replace all 11 starters on defense and call it a day, but they desperately need to get the best out of their best players, especially the younger guys like Mike Sainristil, Trey Amos, and Jordan Magee. That takes a reset with a new mindset and possibly a new scheme, which Quinn will have a hard time doing. It's the main reason he brought over Whitt Jr. in the first place.

We did see a drastic difference in the defense when Quinn took over the play calling against the Miami Dolphins, but we will really see how they look in the final stretch of the season, and see which players belong moving forward. We needed to see this, though, and it showed that there is talent on defense, even though the results haven't been there this season.

The best move Quinn can make is by bringing in a younger, defensive-minded guy similar to Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald, and adjusting to the league, not just another familiar face like Raheem Morris if he's fired from the Atlanta Falcons. Whether that's a coach in college, or someone on the rise in the NFL as an assistant or position coach, Quinn needs a fresh face, and not just another one of his guys from the past. Unless it's Al Harris with the Chicago Bears, but that seems like a big ask.

It worked when they brought in Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator to work with Jayden Daniels and revamp the offense. The success was there last season, and who knows what it would've looked like this year if Jayden Daniels and Terry McLaurin had stayed healthy. Quinn has to realize that what he's done in the past hasn't worked, and a drastic change needs to happen.

The new defensive coordinator needs to lay out his blueprint

Finding the right guy, which I will go more in depth on this week, is just the beginning of it all, and that's when the work really starts. This is the most important offseason for Peters since he joined the Commanders, and he has to work with the new defensive coordinator to rebuild the defense. The new guy would come in, evaluate the roster, see who he likes and what role they would have in his scheme, and then find the missing pieces.


Feb 5, 2024; Ashburn, VA, USA; Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn (L) as Commanders general manager Adam Peters (R) listens during Quinn's introductory press conference at Commanders Park.© Geoff Burke-Imagn Images


Peters is known to involve his coaching staff when it comes to roster changes, and the same needs to happen with the new defensive coordinator in free agency and the draft. Everything Whitt Jr. did clearly didn't work, and Washington needs someone to bring out the best in the current roster, while finding their future players as well. It will be a long process, but one that shows if Quinn can do right by the team and bring in someone he doesn't know on defense, and actually adjust to a possible new scheme, even as a defensive-minded head coach himself.

This story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Nov 18, 2025, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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