Opening statement

Dan Quinn: “Looking to get skill work and execution. Those are the things that were at the top of my mind, and each day to isolate some of the skills needed by the package, what we're looking for, and then the execution. Much-needed break for the guys over the weekend, and we'll come back, have a full week, division game, Philly prep, September football. So, it'll be fun to get rolling.”

With players returning to practice, is there enough time to get them into game shape before the opener?

Dan Quinn: “Yes. You're right on both fronts. Yes, they can get ready, and you do a lot of conditioning as part of the return to play. Is it the same as football play? No. So that's why even in limited work, sometimes the guy may take limited reps in individual and work part of that practice hard. And that was the case with KC and with Bill. I like where they're at heading into next week, and same with OA. He made good progress. He'll be back into the fold with us next week, reps in practice, and he hit all the markers we wanted to hit. So, I'm excited for the group to get together. It's challenging, John, for sure because there's timing that goes with it. There's movements, but it's nice to see that he'll be back full in practice.”

Do you feel good about Odafe Oweh being ready for the season opener?

Dan Quinn: “I'll take it when I get through. I'd rather comment on that after he goes through some of the practices. Yeah, just between you and I, I'll let you know after.”

After going through the offseason and training camp, do you feel like you have a good sense of the foundational pieces on the roster entering Year 3?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, I do, and what they can do and how we can feature them in different ways. Adding a new system probably adds to that too, Nikki, on both sides. So, good news, the players, a lot of the ones we have can fit in a lot of systems. But I do certainly feel that, the execution to that. The ones we've added in free agency, we're talking about some of the rushers on the outside and a guy like Rachaad at running back into that space, I felt they've kind of fit in with the players that have been here. I've been especially pleased with some of the leadership of the veteran players. Two that come to mind, I think of Revo, I think of Terry, I think of Frankie Luvu, of who steps up into that. And so, I see that draw, and I do feel like there's a good mesh of the guys at this point.”

Stefon Diggs is a known quantity in the league, but what have you learned about him since he's been with Washington?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, okay. I knew he was a good competitor. I didn't know how good the fire was around others, the skill work and the huddle. He's the one, ‘Let's go, we're gonna...’ You can fill in the letters and the words. But I liked the fire that he has in him. The tape is the tape, his skills and competitor. I knew he was good in zones. He's probably better in beating the man-to-man than I thought, just from the good route running. But I do like the competitor a lot. I really do.”

How has Sonny Styles progressed from when you first got him until now?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, the football learning was excellent, Barry. He had a lot of intent to get it just right, staying late to get to the details. I like he and Luvu and Leo together and what they can bring. I felt the physicality of him from the first time we had pads. It was like, you know, a good one- or two-yard line and see him go and play physical, that was there. So, I feel like a player that's going like this, that's what you'd hope to see. New system, new calls. Frank and he will both make calls on the field. Sometimes there's too much to be made of the green dot with the coach calling it in, but the position requires leadership, and he has that at linebacker. So, those are a few of the things that jumped out to me, but I like the competitor. I feel like, man, this guy's one of those people that's just going to grow as he's going.”

Nick Allegretti said the silent cadence with Jayden Daniels isn't exactly where he wants it yet. What do you want to see from that before Philadelphia?

Dan Quinn: “There's a couple different ones that we use, so just getting the reps at that. We've done some in the evenings and the walkthroughs, and so just more volume of it. Honestly, most teams like us have more than one that they use, and so you can kind of lean into one. Now I need more work at the second one. But Nick's experience really shows through on that. So, it doesn't surprise me that he was thinking upper-level, like graduate work.”

What are you looking for in clean communication in the huddle, and what are the benefits of huddling more?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, I could say on the defensive side, you're looking for a linebacker or a safety, whomever, to give some of the cues, the alerts. A safety gives the down and distance. Another linebacker might give an alert on a third down. One of the big guys may say something. On the offensive side, it's really directed by one, from the quarterback to who he's talking to at the time. He may talk to the protection to this group, tight end route to here, and a running back cue to someone else. And then as they break the huddle, a last little information that would go. So, I've been pleased with the quarterbacks and what they've done. In the huddle, we had operated exclusively out of no-huddle for a couple years. So, to see that happen, it was intentional for us.”

After installing the new offense, do you believe Jayden Daniels will take fewer hits, and how has he grown in knowing when to protect himself or throw the ball away?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, I think that's the part that I've seen that we worked on the most, to make some decisions where, on this particular play, a throw out of bounds is the right call. I've seen it in two-minute. I've seen it on a throwaway, and the easiest correction for me is, ‘Hey, that was the right call. That was the right decision by you,’ and go play it for the next down. So, this is a really bright guy, and so to see him make these jumps, it's not surprising. But, yeah, I have seen that for sure in practice.”

How much can better communication and expanding Daronte Jones' defensive scheme help improve the tackling issues from late in the preseason?

Dan Quinn: “I think the spacing, when you're playing zone, that can help in the pass game and tackling when you know you're breaking on the quarterback. And so, for sure, the communication is a big piece of that. Where's my leverage? Where's yours? I'm inside, you're outside. And so, for sure, that would be a big piece of that. And then as far as the leverage, that is something that just takes constant work, making sure I've got the right leverage for the right tackle to go for it. But, yeah, for sure, the communication is a big piece of that. As long as everybody's on the same page, right leverage, then the tackling has got to be physical. And the more two-man tackles we make, the better. And that's usually the case when you play more zone.”

Has Joshua Josephs done more than you expected to push his way into the defensive rotation?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, that's a good one. I think sometimes the opportunity, when it's there, what are you going to do with it? And you don't always have that spot. Like at wide receiver, I thought that was a deep group and it was hard to break through. But in that particular one, he had some chances and some opportunity to go, and that was good to see. He's taken a lot of reps, and so he's in good shape. His skills are better going against more times and more opportunities. So, I've been pleased with what I've seen so far. He can really bend. You see the length, but to see him bend, that was a big deal.”

With starters playing less in preseason games, would you prefer more extended joint practices instead?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, that's probably a good question for someone else who's bigger in the decisions, but I like the joint practices a lot, and I like the matchups. I think they're a little more challenging in some ways because we might do a little bit more on both sides. And so maybe there's a time in the future where that is an emphasis and there was a way that we could do more of that. But there's also some of the things for the rookies and some others that it matters, getting their first tackles, going through it. So, I guess there's a side for both. And it might be custom a little bit for the player, who needs what, where they're at. But the joints have a lot of value. So, I'm glad that we were able to get to them.”

How has the dynamic between David Blough and David Raih developed, and how has your trust in them grown?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, I like when you see other coaches supporting one another, and that's really what you feel from Raih for Blough and the other offensive coaches. He's got a good connection with the other rooms, it's tight ends, it's running backs, it's receivers. And so, to see some of that support get lent into different areas, it's a big deal. It'll ramp up now a little bit more, Ben, as the game planning is going, and he'll be responsible for certain areas to support. But he's off to a really good start. He's got good value because of his receiver coaching background. He's been a tight end and been a receiver, and so he's got good training in the system. He and David are in lockstep. That's a big deal.”

What have you seen from the interior defensive line during training camp and the preseason?

Dan Quinn: “Yeah, it was this past week specifically, I felt Tim really make some strides, talking about Settle, and so that was nice to see. I thought Shy had a really good camp inside. We've seen him play almost all the spots interior, up and down. Kinlaw came back in fantastic shape. So, he and Don were the ones that were really kind of setting the pace, along with Johnny before he was injured. So, I like the competitiveness of the group, their connection. Omenihu I like as the inside rusher piece. He's adding a lot to that. So, I like maybe the yin and the yang, the balance of some of the guys who've got real run stuff to them and then some other guys who can get on the edge a little bit more and some pass rush. So, I think it's a good versatile group, and I like the conditioning for the big guys of where they're at at this time of year. I feel like they really came in ready to work, and that's a big deal for the guys to have that type of readiness heading into the season as we begin this journey together.”

Watch Dan Quinn's full Wednesday press conference below.

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