ASHBURN, Va. — A page certainly felt flipped to a fresh chapter Monday afternoon as the Commanders "big three" -- Josh Harris, Dan Quinn and Adam Peters -- spoke candidly about the future of the franchise and major changes coming down the pipeline.
The Washington Commanders welcomed Quinn, 53, as their new head coach in his first media appearance at Commanders Park, fresh off a plane ride from Dallas to the DMV over the weekend, and on the heels of Quinn's first two major hires: Kliff Kingsbury replacing Eric Bieniemy as offensive coordinator and Joe Whitt Jr,. joining from the Cowboys as his defensive coordinator. While the Quinn name may not have excited every Commanders fan right off the bat, Quinn made it clear he was "ready to run like hell" and learn from his past.
"Every once in a while you find the right person, for the right spot at the right time. That's here for me," Quinn told WUSA9's Chick Hernandez in his first one-on-one interview immediately following his news conference. "I know I can't do anything about the past ... but from here moving forward, I'm going to go for it as hard as you've ever seen anybody go for it.
Prior to his three seasons with the Cowboys as defensive coordinator, Quinn was the Falcons' head coach for five-plus seasons (2015-20), going 43-42 with a Super Bowl berth after the 2016 season. But Quinn was fired midseason in 2020, after the team's first 0-5 start in more than 20 years.
"I knew I wanted to make the pain worth it," Quinn said. "I wanted to get the lessons so I could make sure when this lap came again, not only would I know what some blind spots were, I'd be better for it ... It probbaly took that L that I took in Atlanta, to learn these lessons to make sure when I get here to Washington, I'm a better coach than I ever was in Atlanta, and that's what I get to go prove."
WATCH: Full 1-on-1 interview with Dan Quinn
Quinn was able to laugh Monday about the hiring process, and even admitted there was a time he was nervous he wasn't going to get the job, noting he repeatedly checked to see if his phone was working.
Despite some fan rumblings that Harris and Peters were backed into hiring Quinn, the duo squashed those rumors once and for all. Peters introduced Quinn as "unquestionably, one of the best leaders in the NFL," adding that Quinn had been at the top of his list to lead the ship from day one.
"Every time we spoke with Dan, it became more and more clear he was the guy," Peters said. "We interviewed him twice and both times it was like we're speaking the same language."
Harris explained Quinn was picked because he was "someone we felt would lead Washington to be an elite franchise."
When addressing the District for the first time, Quinn described being selected as the next head coach as a joy and privilege. At 53, he says he is a little bit older than most coaches, "but hopefully little bit wiser."
Quinn said a phrase he suspects will be heard often from him is "to be where your feet are." It's a motto he not only coaches by, but lives by.
"This is about assessing what we have, how do we add to that and how quickly we can accelerate this process together," Quinn said. "Now how do you do that? Connection, staff, offseason intro training camp and then ultimately putting all these guys to fnd the best group to go play as best we can, as fast as we can."
WATCH: Quinn introductory press conference with Harris, Peters
Quinn also has several ties to the DMV.
"I grew up a Jersey kid watching the NFC east, but I also spent some time here," he says.
Quinn played college football at Salisbury University from 1989 to 1993. From there he got his first coaching gig at 24, at the College of William and Mary, as an assistant defensive line coach before moving on to the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia where Quinn served as defensive line coach.
He says the DMV has been a big part of his life, especially considering he met his wife Stacey at Salisbury University and they have been happily together for 29 years.
"It's an absolutely awesome life that we share together," says Quinn.
The new coach says he can't wait to start earning the trust of those around him and knows it will take time.
"We know what this franchise means to you, and what it will take to get it back to where it deserves to be," he acknowledged.
When asked what a football team led by him will look like, Quinn had only two words: "explosive and physical."
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