‘You have to be a little bit crazy to be here’: Commanders believe they’re hunters, not prey

Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters was seething. Coach Dan Quinn was hot. It was not a happy locker room.

Losing to Tampa Bay in the season opener wasn’t unexpected. Nobody believed the first act of the Peters-Quinn era inheriting a 4-13 team to be anything special in September. Yet, that expectation and loss ticked off Washington.

“I felt dismissive. ‘Hey man, hang in there, it’s going to be a long time.’ I was like, ‘Hey f-you, that’s not how it’s going to go down,’ ” Quinn said. “And I was upset, but it wasn’t disrespect, it was dismissiveness and I felt some kind of way, but it didn’t motivate me more to say that’s how they think of us. It wasn’t disrespect, it was, we’re going to be a lot better than what we just showed today. And eventually we’ll show that. So, it’s not a prove it to everybody else or underdog story, it’s how we get down.”

The Commanders are still underdogs nationally. A 12-5 season didn’t quiet critics. Washington was an underdog to Tampa Bay in the playoff opener and won. In the second round, the Commanders were nine-point underdogs to the Detroit Lions and beat the Super Bowl favorite handily.

The Philadelphia Eagles are now six-point favorites over the Commanders in Sunday’s NFC Championship. But Washington’s “Anybody, Anywhere, Anytime” motto painted across their largest meeting room has the Commanders ready for their divisional rival after splitting the season’s two meetings.

“You have to be a little bit crazy to be here,” said defensive coordinator Joe Whitt of the persistent red-hot intensity.

Indeed, it’s always competitive inside Commanders Park. Assistant coaches and coordinators compete to make the best presentation on the video boards. “High level,” Whitt said.

Yet, Quinn’s temperament tends to soften when he talks to his Generation Z players. The old-school yelling by coaches in the past has been replaced by encouragement. Still, “To Tell The Truth” film sessions on Mondays set the standards for brutal midweek practices with honesty. Quinn recently pulled running back Brian Robinson aside after a poor outing.

“[Standards are high] because we try to keep it on the front of our thoughts,” Quinn said. “Whether that’s pointing out the leading moments, it’s pointing out any of the parts that we said. I’m more of the person instead of [saying] ‘Don’t do this, don’t do that, don’t do that,’ I’d like to see ‘More of that. I’d like to see more of that. I’d like to see more of that.’”

The intense demeanor hasn’t been radically altered just because the winner of this game will advance to the Super Bowl.

“I personally don’t feel a difference,” quarterback Jayden Daniels said. “[Coaches] been doing a real good job and I think just as players and vets that been in this position, stuff like that, you kind of just lean on them to ask questions and everybody says, you know, keep the main thing the main thing. Obviously it’s the final four, you should say. And you know, there’s gonna be a lot more eyes on on these teams, so you could get outta whack, you could listen to the media, stuff like that. But, if you keep your same routine, stay consistent, it will work out.”

After all, the Commanders know they’re no longer underdogs despite the betting line. In their hearts, they’re hunters, not prey.