The Washington commanders shattered expectations with rapid turnaround

On By Littum

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Sam Cosmi undertook to deliver the message. His Washington’s commanders teammates needed to hear what the right guard had to say in the locker room after the team’s 28-27 loss to Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

“I wanted them to know so as not to let this snowball effect into next week,” Cosmi said. “I wanted them to know that what we have here is still special. Like no matter what, we’re still fighting. I wanted them to know that it should hurt. This should hurt your core. It means a lot to us.”

Cosmi played during the Ron Rivera era Commanders – Four years of dismal results on the field and growing scandals off the field that were not connected to the team, but rather to former owner Dan Snyder. But Josh Harris and his partners bought the team last summer. Adam Peters was hired to take control of football operations, and Dan Quinn is thriving in his second chance as a coach in the NFL. The Commanders are 7-3 and face the Philadelphia Eagles (7-2) on “Thursday Night Football” with the NFC East lead on the line.

With the short week looming, Cosmi’s eloquence set the tone moving forward from a loss in which the Commanders blew a 10-point lead at home. The fourth-year offensive lineman also, perhaps without realizing it, offered his own assessment of the transformation of an entire franchise — and the heightened expectations that come with doing so.

“What Dan Quinn has done, what Adam Peters has done, is change the culture,” Cosmi told reporters. “We don’t have the most talented team, but we have a hard-working team.

“Winning is the ultimate goal. And as I know from the past, this means a lot, not just to me, but to everybody. So just to keep our heads up and keep fighting and let’s get ready to beat Philly.”

Accelerated expectations

Before the loss to Pittsburgh, Washington had not started a season 7-2 in 28 years. Although the lower bowl at Northwest Stadium was filled with yellow “Horrible Towels,” the Commanders say they have sold out every home game this season and had a 90% season ticket renewal rate, according to the Washington Post. Gate receipts have increased by 20% and the team has signed 29 new sponsorship deals in the past year.

Having the presumptive Offensive Rookie of the Year in quarterback Jayden Daniels, the no. 2 pick and reigning Heisman Trophy winner, accelerated the turnaround. But the organizational infrastructure, offensive line and coaching provided to the 23-year-old have eased his transition to the NFL, even though Daniels has been nursing a rib injury since Week 7.

There’s fan excitement, too—from the viral clip of a fan celebrating a Hail Mary win against the Chicago Bears in October to players and coaches saying they can actually feel the energy from the home crowd.

Daniels’ historic start cooled in a Week 6 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Washington showed it could hang with a team that has an “entrenched” identity, as Quinn said. The next day, Quinn was asked if winning the NFC East had become the expectation for the team. The coach said the team rarely discussed expectations, but that it was a goal that was mentioned at the beginning of the season.

“We’re not trying to get hung up on expectations or things that are down or any of that,” Quinn said. “We’re just trying to dig right into this week and say, ‘This is, you know, we’re based on improvement.’ It’s like a lifestyle, man, can you get better?

“I recognize the issue of the division because it’s really important to talk about it, but you don’t really talk about them until you talk about the division games when you play in them.”

Washington is 2-0 in NFC East games this year, both wins against the New York Giants. Four of their last eight games are against either the Eagles or the Dallas Cowboys.

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Culture is the key to rapid turnaround

The Commanders finished last in the division during Rivera’s final two seasons and went 4-13 in 2023. A coaching search yielded Quinn, the former Atlanta Falcons head coach who had spent the previous three seasons leading the Cowboys’ defense.

“I didn’t really understand culture. I have not been part of a ‘good culture,’” Cosmi said. “This year I am slowly but surely – I can see it. It’s really cool to see and be a part of. Talks and acts on it. So I’m excited about that.”

Five years ago, then-General Manager Bruce Allen said that “the culture is actually pretty damn good” in Washington, and the remark became a punchline.

At the trade deadline last year, Rivera was pressured to sell defensive linemen Montez Sweat and Chase Young, both former first-round picks in the organization. A year later, Peters found himself buying at the deadline, acquiring former New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore, whose Commanders debut will have to wait at least another week as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury.

“I don’t necessarily see it as being a buyer or a seller,” said Peters, who had $96 million in cap space to work with this offseason and signed respected veterans (who have also been contributors) such as tight end Zach Ertz. running back Austin Ekeler, linebacker Frankie Luvu and linebacker Bobby Wagner. “I think I’m just trying to do the best I can to help this team be as good as it can be.”

Quinn defines culture as “how a group lives its life together.” For him, it lies in the standards – e.g. effort and physique – that he has set.

“The things we want to play with,” Quinn said after Washington’s 3-1 start. “Has it all been perfect? ​​Hell no. But there’s (sic) a lot of things that show how far people are for each other. And those kinds of things go a long way in helping that identity take shape.

“But it takes a while to go through it and every time we play you just see it over and over again. So yeah we’re building it but no way in four games we’re going to be where we need to be in two months .”

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