Washington Commanders Coach Dan Quinn Reveals Jeremy Chinn's Role

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn revealed how he plans to use safety Jeremy Chinn after signing the veteran in free agency.

Adam Peters has rebuilt the Washington Commanders' defensive roster during his first offseason as the team’s general manager, but one signing may be flying under the radar. 

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn shared the role he has planned for former Carolina Panthers defender Jeremy Chinn and what went into picking him over other safeties in free agency.

Jeremy Chinn

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"When you're looking at that process like safeties, there's some that are down and play in the box that can play multiple roles, and that's what I think Jeremy can do,” Quinn said before asking himself an even bigger question.

“So, how do we feature Jeremy at his best? I think he's down by the line of scrimmage. He's blitzing. He's guarding tight ends, and so that was one of the things that we thought would be really important. We want to play tight. We want to play aggressive, so the more man-to-man, the more blitzing ability, that's what we're looking for into that spot."

Chinn is a versatile defender who excelled at tackling early on in his NFL career. As a rookie, Chinn finished No. 2 in the Defensive Rookie of the Year race after piling up 117 combined tackles, five pass deflections, five quarterback hits, returning two fumbles for touchdowns, one sack, and intercepting one pass while starting 15 games. 

Unfortunately, over the past two seasons, Chinn has struggled with injuries, and this past season, for the first time in his career, he wasn’t even a guaranteed starter when he did play. 

Last year, Chinn started in eight of the 12 games he played in but had by far his most lackluster campaign to date. He finished 2023 with just 30 combined tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one quarterback hit, and one pass deflection.

Despite Chinn’s struggles last season, he signed a contract with Washington worth roughly $4.1 million. The hope is that Chinn can recapture his early career success while playing alongside defenders like veteran linebacker Bobby Wagner, who also thrives when playing aggressively and joined the Commanders in free agency.

If Quinn can get the Chinn of old to return to form in 2024, then Peters will look like a genius for taking a free-agency flier on a player with more than enough talent to exceed the contract he signed and help establish a new culture in Washington.