Hogs Haven
A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East, the NFL and sports in general, and a sprinkling of other stuff
It is normal for NFL teams, especially ones that have had recent success, to see some of their coaches move on to other opportunities and perhaps even fill head coaching vacancies. That was not the case for the Commanders, who had their entire coaching staff return for the second season of the Peters-Quinn regime.
The reason: the quality of culture Washington has is hard to find, even in the NFL, and people want to help it continue to grow.
“DQ [Quinn] has created a tremendous culture,” said offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. “The organization has as well, just starting at the top with [Managing Partner] Josh [Harris] and then AP [Peter], the type of people they brought in.”
When asked last season about his interest in being a head coach again, Kingsbury said he would “at some point” but was also happy with his current situation.
“This has been an awesome place,” Kingsbury said, “and has really helped me rekindle my love for the sport.”
Of course, Kingsbury ended up staying with the Commanders after their loss in the NFC Championship, and the significance of that decision is not lost on Quinn, who showed his appreciation for the entire coaching staff choosing to stay in Washington.
It’s going to take some time for that connection to develop and may not fully bloom until after the season begins in September, but Samuel is already impressed with the second-year signal-caller.
“I feel like the man’s been here forever,” Samuel said. “He’s comfortable; he knows what’s going on; he knows where the ball needs to go. I just think he’s very smart.”
The Commanders’ acquisition of Samuel from the San Francisco 49ers was one of the team’s first moves to help him accomplish that. Samuel was a versatile weapon for the 49ers since he was drafted in 2019, amassing nearly 6,000 scrimmage yards and 42 touchdowns. His best skill set is what he can do with the ball in his hands; although his depth of target is only 6.4 yards, he has 3,594 yards after contact, which represents 61% of his total production.
It seems like a perfect partnership for Daniels, who excels at ball placement and puts his weapons in the best position to succeed. He and Samuel are still developing their chemistry, although there were flashes of what it could be during Washington’s OTA practice on May 28. Samuel used his 215-pound frame to get in front of a defender and turned a slant route into a decent gain.
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