What Washington Commanders' Dan Quinn Said About Rookie Josh Conerly Jr.

Washington Commanders rookie offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. made his NFL preseason debut on Friday, and despite Washington's blowout loss to the New England Patriots, the Commanders have plenty of reasons to be excited about Conerly.

Washington drafted the former Oregon Ducks offensive tackle with the No. 29 overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and Conerly showed off some of his potential in limited snaps against New England.

Washington Commanders offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. (72) jogs on the field during drills training camp preseaso — Jun 10, 2025; Ashburn, VA, USA; Washington Commanders offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. (72) jogs on the field during drills on day one of minicamp at Commanders Park. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Conerly's Preseason Performance

According to PFF, Conerly played 14 pass block snaps and only allowed one pressure. PFF also gave Conerly a run block grade of 77.7.

Most impressively, Conerly has shown his ability to handle the transition from left tackle to right tackle. While in college, Conerly anchored Oregon's offensive line at the left tackle position for two seasons. Conerly's impressive play during his season led him to declare for the NFL Draft early and ultimately be selected in the first round.

However, Washington acquired Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil via a trade with the Houston Texans during the offseason, meaning Conerly will start his NFL career at right tackle.

Jul 23, 2025; Ashburn, VA, USA; Washington Commanders offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil (78) walks out of team headquarters onto the fields prior to practice on day one of training camp at OrthoVirginia Training Center at Commanders Park. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Commanders coach Dan Quinn talked about Conerly after Friday's preseason game after Quinn was asked about the rookie out of Oregon and if he's seen progress from Conerly.

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What Dan Quinn Said About Conerly

Aug 8, 2025; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn reacts during the first half against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. | Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

"I'll have to look. Felt that way. The last -- the practice one I felt it. I really did. The quickness off the ball. Liked seeing him and LT (Laremy Tunsil) doing some things together. Didn't get as much of a sense tonight, although protection to his side felt strong. So, I'll get a better sense but it just felt clean for him. We knew going into it we were going to play X amount at practice and try to get 20 or so in the game, and we accomplished that. So it felt clean," said Quinn.

The Commanders coach also detailed Conerly's development as a rookie, comparing the former Oregon Duck to other young players that Quinn has coached in his career.

"It's usually what happens with the younger player. Like they go in these jumps and then they hit the plateaus and take the jumps again. For the veteran players, the ceiling is harder. A guy like Jeremy McNichols. Really consistent. Like it's a little bit more and I liked it because of that consistency. For the younger ones you see these big swings. It's like awesome one, sometimes a down one, and you're trying to level it out," said Quinn.

"What I felt maybe over the last couple days is like this (hand pointing up). I'll have to look at it and assess it again. But being available and the work ethic and the way he's growing," Quinn continued. "He's got some really cool veterans around him that can share that too. I know what I felt from watching the practice tape. I sense I'm in that same space again. Like I said I felt strong with him in the first performance."

Conerly and the Commanders will continue preseason play with games against the Cincinnati Bengals (Aug. 18) and Baltimore Ravens (Aug. 23) before opening the regular season on Sept. 7 against the New York Giants.