10 Commanders Quotes Reveal What Washington Changed Before Eagles Rematch

The Washington Commanders have had nearly two weeks to examine what went wrong during their 1-4-1 start. Now they'll find out whether that extra preparation makes a difference when the Philadelphia Eagles visit Northwest Stadium on Sunday night.

From Jayden Daniels identifying problems with the offense's operation to Dan Quinn explaining why both sides of the ball needed simplifying, this week's press conferences offered a clearer picture of what Washington has been working on.

Here are 10 quotes that help define where the Commanders stand entering Week 8.

10. Jayden Daniels — “We still have an opportunity to shift our season”

Oct 19, 2026; Santa Clara, California, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) looks to pass during the second quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Question: How does Daniels maintain a positive outlook despite the team's difficult start and continued losses?

“I mean, to our benefit, you know, we still have an opportunity to, you know, shift our season and, you know, try to win the division. And, you know, you've got to not worry when you look at that, but you've got to take it day by day and, you know, kind of have that optimistic mindset ... Once one gets rolling, hopefully, you know, a lot more follow. So you've just got to take the process day by day and not really try to focus on the outcome. We know what's out there. Like, you know, we're not blind to that, but this is day by day, and as soon as you start thinking about that and you get out of your process, your routine, that's where you kind of get all messed up.”

9. Dan Quinn — Steve Wilks will be on the sideline against Philadelphia

Question: What will Steve Wilks' role be during Sunday's game, and how will he help the coaching staff?

“Just another set of eyes. It won't be something too significant, because he won't be at every game. So he'll be on the sideline. He'll give some information back as we get through the calls, going through the iPad. So it's, you know, just another set of seasoned eyes that we'll have.”

8. David Blough — Chig Okonkwo could see more opportunities

Question: What's been responsible for the improved production from the tight end position, particularly with Chig Okonkwo back?

“You know, he's playing at a high level right now. First and second down, he's been, you know, really rolling. We're trying to get him in space, and he certainly, you know, has made the most of his opportunities. So things that we saw on tape as we got him in free agency and then really even into OTAs, we're trying to highlight for him and, you know, certainly want to get him involved more all 60 minutes in the plan.”

7. Jayden Daniels — Losing Terry McLaurin affects more than the offense

Context: Jayden Daniels discusses Terry McLaurin's season-ending injury and its impact on the locker room.

“Well, I'll answer your second question first. On the field, it's just next-man-up mentality. It's an unfortunate circumstance, the situation that we're in. You never want to deal with injuries. And I know how hard Terry worked, you know, to get back from what he was dealing with last year and, you know, to have countless conversations with him. And obviously it sucks, and that's just, you know, just what he has to deal with right now, adversity. But I just think to the locker room, to everybody, it's a blow because just Terry, just his energy, his presence, his leadership, just what he means to this organization. Like, you know, having him deal with that, it's going to sting for a little bit, but, you know, we got to hold it down while he's gone.”

6. Dan Quinn — Antonio Williams could benefit from a more defined role

Question: What progress has Antonio Williams made over the last several weeks, and how can Washington get him more involved?

“Over the few weeks, playing multiple positions, that's a challenge, you know, for any player, especially a first-year player. So to settle in more at one spot, John, that will help also. Get more playing time, more ops, you know, just based on that alone. He's diligent. He's got good feel, how to play it in zone, if the routes have to adjust for man-to-man. Those are, like, some of the subtle things that I see from him.”

Who will help replace the void left by Terry McLaurin in this Commanders offense?

May I present to you: Antonio Williams. pic.twitter.com/k0xkFsjAJb
— Scott Abraham (@Scott7news) October 28, 2026

5. Austin Ekeler — What simplifying the offense actually means

Question: How does Ekeler view the changes Washington made to simplify its offense?

“Well, it depends. I feel like it depends on where you're at mentally. If you're a rookie, I think this is still a complex offense. We still have enough variety to have a great game plan. Maybe it's not as many different types of personnel groupings, maybe not as many combinations of different types of players. Maybe make it a little more universal, where multiple people can play at the same spot. And so I think it's something that helps us play faster, but I think it's still an offense that you can go attack and have a diversified game plan. So simplifying it, maybe you're just bringing down 20% of the play calls and play groupings.”

4. Daronte Jones — Washington's blitzes aren't producing enough

Question: Washington has one of the NFL's highest blitz rates. Why hasn't that resulted in more consistent pass-rush success?

“I think there's a combination of a few things. There's the execution of it in terms of the assignments, the paths. There's some winning. We have to win one-on-ones when we get those one-on-one matchups. And so very seldom are you going to have free runners all the time. And so you're going to have to win some one-on-ones. But we can be more useful with that if we're executing properly and attacking the right path, right edges on certain guys.”

3. Jayden Daniels — Washington needs to get out of the huddle faster

Question: How have Daniels' responsibilities changed in the new offense, particularly with checks at the line of scrimmage?

“I'd say just having the urgency from myself and obviously everybody else, the subbing and stuff like that, the urgency in and out the huddle is kind of the biggest thing for me where I could grow even more. It's just getting up to the line of scrimmage and, you know, giving us more time, you know, to go out there and dissect and have an idea what the defense is presenting or what they're doing. And I think that's kind of just the biggest thing, like the communication in and out the huddle.”

2. David Blough — Third and fourth downs remain the biggest problem

Question: What were the most important findings from Washington's bye-week offensive evaluation, and what changes can the coaching staff make?

“I think without giving too much away, there's some things we can do in personnel groupings to help just allow the players who are on the field to play a little bit faster. So communication improves, simplifying some things there. And then the biggest hangup for us as a unit so far has been third and fourth down. So we've got to be able to, you know, when everybody knows we're going to throw it, we've got to be able to hit our landmarks, protect, throw, catch, coach, play better, you know, coach and execute better at that point.”

1. Dan Quinn — “You could lose some aggressiveness or execution”

Question: When Washington talks about simplifying its schemes, does that mean simplifying the terminology or reducing the responsibilities players have during a play?

“Yep, both. I'll give you the first one. Like, sometimes it could be layers. So it could have a call on offense or defense that has, if they do this, we'll do this. If they do this, we'll do this. Sometimes we need something that's like, this is how we're going to go play. And so that would be a volume thing. Say, how many of those do we want checks? That is a part of what we do and why I like our system. But there'll be times where I just want the guys to go play as fast and as decisively as we can. And the same thing on the offensive side. If you're always chasing a certain look, you could lose some aggressiveness or execution. So that's the balance. And so some of it is volume. Some of it is, let's say, layers down to get the execution like you want.”

Washington spent the bye week identifying problems that have followed it through the first six games. The coaching staff has now explained what it intends to do differently, from reducing some of the responsibilities within its schemes to getting calls communicated faster.

Sunday night against Philadelphia will provide the first real look at whether any of those changes make a difference.

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