Commanders coach admits team took '10 steps back' in blowout

MINNEAPOLIS – Last week, when the Washington Commanders fell in overtime to the Denver Broncos, there was a sense that while the team lost, it had taken a major step forward.

It was such a momentous game that many felt confident the Commanders would come into Week 14 with renewed energy and beat the Minnesota Vikings, on the road.

Not only did that not happen in the 31-0 loss, but Washington also took two, three, and even more steps back from the ones it took forward the week prior. So many, in fact, it appears those confidences gained before may have been nothing but false hope.

Nov 9, 2025; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn stands on the field following a loss to the Detroit Lions at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images | Peter Casey-Imagn Images

'None of It Was Acceptable'

"I thought we took a step forward last week, and tonight I thought we took three steps back, and we didn't find our rhythm and let them live into there,” head coach Dan Quinn said after the game. “So tonight, to me, none of it was acceptable."

Later in his postgame press conference, Quinn would not only double down, but even add in that “it felt like 10 steps back.”

"But I think it's fair that he said we took some steps forward last week,” receiver Terry McLaurin said in his own postgame interview. “But we took some steps back this week. And I think that's honestly, we all got to own that."

The Turning Point

What is it they need to own? For starters, getting to the Vikings’ two-yard line with a goal to go and not only not getting a touchdown, but turning the ball over on downs. That came in a 7-0 game, on the Commanders’ first offensive possession of the game, and McLaurin pointed to that exchange as arguably the key moment in the contest.

"If we would've came out with seven, it's a completely different game,” he said. “I feel like because you come and respond to the drive that they had and gives their defenses like, ‘Okay, we go back out there and see those zeros.’"

"That was the game,” Quinn agreed. “I thought honestly where it shifted the most then because third down stops, that flips it back, and it flips it back.

"And so in some regards, tonight's harder, tonight's harder because when you're that flat that you leave it all on the table and you didn't feel the tank back up to go."

Someone who always seems to have something left in the tank for his team, no matter the situation, is linebacker Bobby Wagner. "It's unfortunate that where we're at, we have a lot of the guys in this room and just haven't worked out as far," he said after the game, seeming unwavering from his weekly mission to get the team to a better spot than it's in today.

Nov 30, 2025; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders tight end Zach Ertz (86) reacts after a catch against the Denver Broncos in the second quarter of the game at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Injuries Compound the Pain

Compounding the loss and the pain of the steep regression is the injury to tight end Zach Ertz, a teammate McLaurin referred to as a “linchpin” for the team. Quinn shared after the game that it looks like a significant knee injury for the veteran.

Ertz’s injury came after quarterback Jayden Daniels aggravated his left elbow injury after falling on it trying to pursue a play following an interception.

"Give an update on Jayden, obviously fell on his elbow, was questionable to return, and could have,” Quinn said after the game. “It was my decision to sit him out as a team. At this point, we were off and felt like that was the right call for us to go."

Fellow quarterback Marcus Mariota came in the game after Daniels’ injury, and while he faced his own struggles, he appreciated the player-first approach to deciding the path ahead. "You want to make sure that he's good, and at the end of the day, the health of the players is most important, and we want to make sure that he's taken care of."

McLaurin also emphatically shared that nobody is going to feel bad for Washington as it continues to navigate arguably the most turbulent season in recent memory. In fact, the star receiver went as far as to say that he also doesn’t feel bad for the team, leaning on themselves to pull the group out of the rut they’ve dug themselves into.

For Mariota, who not that long ago stated that the Commanders weren’t who they thought they were, just as bluntly shared after Week 14 that "we can't keep going forward and keep coming back."

That’s especially true when, as Quinn said, the team is taking 10 steps back after taking just a few forward.

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