Commanders coach shares emotional reaction to huge stadium news

On Saturday, Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn sat down ahead of training camp practice No. 8 to address the media as he always does, only this time he had a message to share.

Coming off the heels of the DC Council’s vote to approve the deal that will bring the Commanders back to the site of old RFK Stadium, Quinn’s message was one of gratitude and understanding of the bigger picture.

"Before we get rolling, I thought I'd give a quick shout out to (Washington managing partner) Josh Harris and his team,” Quinn said. “So much gratitude on how strong their commitment is to the team now and to the future. Doing what was necessary to secure their critical next step in the road back to RFK and how much means to the team, the community. And that's really cool. So I was super pumped for him and for all the members and limited partners that are with him, a lot of gratitude for how strong he's shown that support for us."

Washington Commanders coach Dan Quinn and managing partner Josh Harris. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Harris had a heavy burden to carry when he became the leader of an ownership group that not only bought the Commanders’ franchise in 2023 but committed itself to resurrecting the once proud organization.

One thing he set out to accomplish early on was reconnecting Washington with its past, including a return to RFK. The importance of that move, Quinn acknowledged Saturday, is "a really big deal."

If all goes well, Quinn will get to coach the first game played in the new stadium, one that is promised to honor the history of the original stadium and namesake, one way or another.

"I always have a real appreciation for people that put in the work and obviously this takes a lot of work to do that. I wish I had coached at RFK. I didn't, but I saw it a lot and as a member of this organization, DMV. And so for all former Redskins, Commanders, everybody, like there's that energy about it."

"I know these guys have been working incredibly hard, man,” Quinn also said. “This is a lot of big steps that they're putting together... I think about the work that's going in right now and the type of attitude it takes to stand up and fight for what you want."

Right now, the news represents an idea of what could be, and Quinn is focused on what is, leaving the thought of who will be the team’s coach when the stadium opens to the future where it belongs.

In the present day, however, the future is now firmly tied to the past, and every day that goes by, every week that a game gets played, and every season that opens and closes, it appears Washington is one step closer to going home.

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