Dan Quinns Brotherhood Headlines Sunday’s Victory

By: Sam Myer 9/23/2025

Since he arrived in Washington early in 2024, head coach Dan Quinn has emphasized that his main focus in the locker room is cultivating a brotherhood on and off the field. It seems as though every media interview we see from the players, coaching staff, and front office alike have the same tone and message. We’re here to compete with whoever is lined up across from us, no matter if it is our teammate or a division rival. This level of competition was on full display against the Raiders on Sunday when the Commanders dominated in all three phases in their 41-24 victory.

The turning point of the game came late in the second quarter when Marcus Mariota scrambled towards the Commanders sideline. After being forced out of bounds, he ran straight in Dan Quinn and knocked him flat on his back. Quinn popped right up from the friendly fire but had a stream of blood coming down his nose. After Matt Gay’s 56-yard field goal to end the first half, the broadcast cut to the Quinn celebrating with blood all over his face.

Following the victory, we learned that Quinn was being tended to by the medical team during the entire halftime period. It came to the point where veteran linebacker Bobby Wagner was ready to address the team before heading back out to the field. However, at the last minute Quinn came back into the locker room and gave a fiery speech to which Wagner said afterwards, “I don’t know if I can repeat those words; Very colorful.” Marcus Mariota said “that’s what really got the guys going” regarding Quinn being bandaged up during halftime.

Clearly it did as Washington completely dominated the second half, getting contributions from up and down the roster. Jaylin Lane got his career touchdown on a 90-yard punt return and Terry McLaurin had his first long catch of the season nearly resulting in a touchdown. Additionally, Washington received contributions on defense from Jeremy Reaves and Javonte Jean-Baptiste. Finally, Luke McCaffery registered his first career touchdown on a 43-yard catch and run to seal the game in the 4^th quarter.

The brotherhood that Dan Quinn created in Washington has never had a more dazzling display than on Sunday and it felt as though it was truly unifying moment in their season. With the injuries nearing double-digit levels through three weeks of games, the next man up mentality will never have a tougher test than the next four weeks.