10 Commanders Quotes That Define Washington Entering Week 2 vs. Cowboys

The Washington Commanders spent the week looking for answers after their Week 1 loss to Philadelphia as they prepared for another NFC East matchup against the Dallas Cowboys.

These 10 quotes best explain where Washington stands heading into Sunday.

10. Dan Quinn — “Near misses, they sting”

Sep 13, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn is seen against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Question: “Some of your guys have been really transparent this week with what happened last week, their roles, and some of the mistakes that were made. Having that accountability and being willing to share it publicly-how much does that help you make sure you get better from Week 1 to Week 2?”

"Yeah. And near misses, they sting. And so I love the leadership from the captains because it really comes from them first about, ‘This is what we like. This is what we need to hit on.’ And so when we refer to leveling up, it was specific. What's the one thing you want to do this week to make sure you're the best version of yourself by Sunday? And then as we get into tomorrow, okay, did you do what you said you were going to do? And so to me, that's like the accountability player to player. So we talked about in the meeting room, to the person you were sitting right next to, what's the thing? And then as it gets to tomorrow, did you do what you said you were going to do? But that's the sign of a good locker room, of guys that want to own it. And they felt connected, disappointed, all the things that we had. And so you don't get the except-for plays, and they know that as well. So, I like the work that we put in in order to take the improvement up."

9. Daronte Jones — Commanders should know what their defense is within four games

Question: “When you're implementing a new scheme, at what point in the season does it usually click from your experience and kind of come to life in the way that you envision it?”

"In the past, it varies. You would like, as a goal, to be the first quarter of the season, you know, in those first four games. Sometimes it happens faster, like that Game 3, because you're still working out some of the kinks. Sometimes you're trying to get the continuity together, especially if you have a lot of new guys. Some things that goes into that. But definitely by the first quarter of the season, you have a good beat on, ‘Okay, this is who we are. This is how our guys respond and how they play.’ And then you can kind of build even from a staff perspective in terms of, you know, we're still — I know I am — in terms of, you know, you watch these guys in practice and so forth like that, but also, you know, we say practice execution becomes game reality. So how they respond in games, you kind of understand, ‘Okay, this player is better at that than I thought he was, so let's utilize him more in that way,’ or, ‘He's not quite where we want to be in that particular space, so let's keep him out of those spaces.’ And so I think by the first four games, you kind of have a better idea of the team and the defense as a whole."

8. David Blough — “Truthfully, it wasn't good enough”

Sep 13, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) before action against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Question: “When Jayden talked to us yesterday, he acknowledged that for probably the first three-and-a-half quarters, it felt like the passing offense was kind of out of rhythm. Now that you've had the chance to watch the tape, what did you notice as some of the reasons behind that?”

"Yeah, sure. I think at the end of the day, and what we're preaching on this week, right, it's our detail. It's our fundamentals. So, it's hitting the right spots in the passing game because I agree with you, man. Truthfully, it wasn't good enough in the passing game. There were some good things in the run game, and it came to life late, but we got to detail it up, right? We got to coach better and we got to execute better when we get our opportunities."

7. Jayden Daniels — Commanders won't force-feed Terry McLaurin

Question: “I know you said with Terry last game they were sending a lot of cloud coverage his way and extra attention. It's going to happen often with your number one receiver. What are some ways you can keep him engaged in the offense even when he is receiving that extra attention from the defense?”

"I think we just have answers for that, and you try to predict what you could see. You're not going to get every answer to the test, right? But you try to have predictions of like this could happen, and obviously Philly did a great job with their game plan of taking Terry away and forcing other guys to make plays, which they did. And, you know, when those opportunities present itself for Terry to make plays, we got to make them at the end of the day. I got to give him a good ball. He got to catch it. A lot has to go on to successfully have a play. But, you know, moving forward, man, it's have answers for that. And, you know, not going to force-feed Terry the ball, but still go through my reads. But when those opportunities present itself for Terry to go make plays, I know he'll make them.

6. Dan Quinn — Turnovers can be coached

Question: “We've spent the better part of two years talking about turnovers and the tough time you've had creating them. From a coaching standpoint, can you coach turnovers? Can you coach causing them? How do you do that?”

You can. You can. It is definitely a mindset. Some have more innate, let's call it, like a feel. You know, ‘Okay, this play's there, I can go do that.’ So, I would say some is, but I definitely think it's a trainable thing. It's not necessarily the first person there. Oftentimes, talking about fumbles specifically, can I force it as the second guy there, the third guy there to go? Sometimes the tip passes just by being in zone to create one. So, I do think the speed can create it; the hitting can create it. But it is a skill, and I do think there's a level of that. Like, if you come in being able to take the ball away, I think that does factor in. Much like production in college, like a guy has a lot of tackles there, it's likely that's going to carry over. And oftentimes you'd see somebody with these measurables or this type of speed without the production. Sometimes you can be, but in this instance I think you can go to another level. Maybe not two or three levels, but I think you can certainly go up one.

5. Daronte Jones — Mike Sainristil will bounce back

Sep 13, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) runs the ball against Washington Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil (0) during the first half at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Question: “With Mike Sainristil being part of giving up the two big plays, the long one and then the touchdown, what are some of the coaching points, teaching points that you hammer home this week as you get ready for Dallas?”

Yeah, urgency. Playing until the whistle blows would be huge. That happened not only with the Mikey situation; it also happened in the last touchdown of the game. And regardless of what happened, we have to have the ability to respond. You know, play to the echo of the whistle. We talked about that there and just continue to dial in on the techniques with Mikey. You know, he wasn't satisfied with the way he played, and I don't think anyone was. But yet and still, we know what he's capable of, just like he is, and continue to just, ‘Hey man, focus on your fundamentals, have your eyes in the right place, finish those plays, have a sense of urgency.’ And he'll bounce back because that's the kind of player he is.

4. David Blough — Jayden Daniels has freedom at the line

Question: “After the game, Jayden shared with us that whatever you call, he's 100 percent behind you. But as the season goes on, will you be open to him changing something if the play starts to break down or if he sees something else?”

“I think there are different ways to handle that, whether we build it into the plan for him to handle that, whether it's a kill or an audible built into the play. And then there's a lot of conversations that go in Monday through Saturday that we can get to a place that we're comfortable with. There's a lot of mechanics in this system that allow him to have a little bit of freedom, right? But we make those decisions together. So, at the end of the day, he's an extension of our organization, our staff on the field, and we — like he said, he's got my back. I got his back 100 percent.”

3. Dan Quinn — Sonny Styles arrived “a man on a mission”

Question: “Just in general, with a rookie like Sonny, how do you know he's ready for more responsibility? Are there certain markers you look for with rookies where it's, ‘Okay, he hit this, so we're going to go to this’?

"Yes. And I think it's important that you set certain blocks and standards that you want to go to. And that's starting in the spring of call command and owning your technique. Oftentimes the veteran players will look to the rookies and, ‘Okay, can this man help us? He's dependable. He's reliable. He's on to his calls. He's on to the details.’ Those are the things that usually jump out to the veterans. ‘Okay, I think we got something here,’ and where it can go. And so it has to hit those markers first. And then it's into the training camp piece, and how does that leveling up continue. And so for Sonny, it's been pretty consistent. And that's all, as a rookie, your teammates want to see from you is consistency and improvement, knowing there's ups and downs that go with it. He's got an excellent group to go with, as well as a coach that can really instill belief and technique, talking about Ken. And when you put that part together, I think it allows an environment for somebody to really take off. But make no mistake, Sonny came in really as a man on a mission to get it right and to be really detailed and accountable. So, it was kind of like a perfect environment for some of his skills to be accentuated even higher, if that's a word. Accentuated, I think it is."

A CUT UP OF ALL OF JAYDEN DANIELS THROWS FROM WEEK 1 ‼️:

He went 18/34 (52.9%), which is misleading!

His adjusted completion % (excluding drops, and throwaways) is 69.2%

There were 5 WR errors that caused Incompletions (3 Drops/2 Falls) and 5 Throwaways.

The Box Score never… pic.twitter.com/16AUoy6vgy
— Commanders Lead (@CommandersLead) September 15, 2026

2. Jayden Daniels — Week 1 anxiousness is gone

Question: “Does that boost you at all going forward now that the first one's in the rearview and now you just focus on Dallas and not how long you've been away?”

"Yeah, I think so. I think it's the anxiousness of getting back out there on the field, and it's been a while since I played a live football game before last Sunday. And going out there, and really, just now it's in the past; it's done, it's moved on, and you're moving forward to the next game versus Dallas."

1. Jayden Daniels — “I don't think I was ever on a leash”

The final question was difficult to hear in the recording and has been omitted.

"Leash? I don't think I was ever on a leash (laughs). I just think at the end of the day, like going on Year 3, he knows me, he knows the competitor I am, knows the player I am, and, you know, he trusts me ultimately to go out there and do whatever it takes to help win this football team game. And trust me with everything. And when a play needs to be made; I got to go out there and make a play. Like we need a spark, I can provide that. But I don't have to do it every play. So I think that's kind of the fine line of that. But he still knows at the end of the day I'm still going to be me. And we kind of have those talks. It's just all about protecting yourself."

The Commanders know what went wrong in Week 1. Now comes the harder part: proving they fixed it against Dallas.

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