EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsASHBURN, Va. -- In the midst of multiple teams around the league canceling minicamp or reducing the number of days, Washington Commanders coach Dan Quinn was asked Tuesday if he would do the same. He quickly shot it down."Nope, we'll be here," he said.Coming off a 5-12 season, nothing less should have been expected. Besides, they had a barbecue scheduled for the players, coaches and their families to celebrate the end of the offseason after the final day. When the final whistle blew Thursday, signaling the end of minicamp, players whooped and hollered, raising their helmets as they gathered together.From the end of the season until now, Washington has had reasons to feel good: It has strengthened key areas; its quarterback is healthy, and its top receiver feels good.With minicamp over, here are five takeaways from the Commanders' offseason practices.1. The energy was different this springQuinn emphasized energy entering voluntary OTA sessions and mandatory minicamps. At one point, he compared a 2024 OTA session to one from the same day in 2025. He noticed something was off. He even showed the video to players who were around for both years.Quinn even stopped one OTA practice to restart a session because, he said, the rookies' energy wasn't high enough."Last year I felt [we] just weren't as connected," Quinn said. "I was looking at desperation and being hungry."This offseason, Washington added 31 new players and two new coordinators. But safety Jeremy Reaves said there's another reason the energy was different."Yeah, we won five games last year," Reaves said. "That should be all the motivation you need to be urgent. We weren't good. If that doesn't add enough pep in your step, you're in the wrong field."2. More defensive speedThe defense was a focus this offseason after having one of the NFL's worst units in 2025. The Commanders changed coordinators, firing Joe Whitt and hiring Daronte Jones, and changed schemes, switching to a 3-4.But adding speed was a primary goal.On some plays this spring, rookie linebacker Sonny Styles -- who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.46 seconds -- closed fast on pass catchers in front of him, leading to what would have been no yards after the catch. He did the same in the flat on other plays. Another time, veteran outside linebacker Odafe Oweh -- using his 4.36-second combine 40 time -- was able to prevent quarterback Jayden Daniels from turning the corner on a designed run.Linebacker Leo Chenal is another one of the speedy additions. The hope with all this quickness is to help Jones be creative and aggressive with his defensive calls."Younger, faster, more explosive," linebacker Frankie Luvu said of the defense. "We're just hunting man. ... Very aggressive, very downhill. We're disruptive."3. Questions remain at running backThe Commanders haven't had a No. 1 running back in a while and are likely to enter the season with a running back by committee situation.The Commanders signed Rachaad White and Jerome Ford in the offseason and drafted Penn State's all-time leading rusher, Kaytron Allen, in the sixth round. They also have holdovers Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Jeremy McNichols and are intrigued by undrafted rookie Robert Henry Jr."We all do a lot of things well, we've all got different styles," White said.Croskey-Merritt, who led the team with 815 yards last season, was noticeably bigger in the spring. Quinn said they told him he needed to add bulk. They need him to be a bigger factor in the pass game.Washington has not had a 1,000-yard rusher since 2021 and has had only two in the past 11 seasons. Also, Daniels' ability to run, whether on designed runs or scrambles, will factor into their rushing success. His 891 yards rushing in 2024 were the fourth-highest total by any Washington player since 2015.Quinn said the run game might not have one main player but will instead utilize individuals' strengths in different situations.4. Daniels looks like Daniels againDaniels and the offense rarely looked in sync during the spring and summer of 2025. A big part of that stemmed from an offseason holdout by McLaurin, who was Daniels' No. 1 target the previous season.McLaurin appears happy this spring. And Daniels, who is coming off an injury-filled season that limited him to four full games and parts of three others, has been more on target than last year.But Quinn said they will need a lot more reps for Daniels to bring the offense "to life." For now, he listens to what Daniels says as much as what he does. They've had the quarterbacks wear GoPro cameras on their helmets. The main benefit of which -- according to multiple coaches and players, including quarterback Marcus Mariota -- is it allows the coaches to hear what the quarterback says in the huddle and how he handles checks at the line of scrimmage.Quinn said he's liked what he's heard from Daniels as they break the huddle, such as reminding receivers about their splits or telling another "I'm coming to you." Daniels is providing information before the snap."The better you know [the offense], the more you're able to share," Quinn said. "The fact he can call out who should be where, that's a big deal. I'm excited to see him grow more into it."McLaurin said in the past the quarterbacks and receivers would meet each Friday during the season. He said Daniels and Mariota have been running meetings at 8 a.m. in the spring. Daniels watches film with coordinator David Blough and has notes for the receivers on various plays.Seeing a healthy Daniels and a happy McLaurin in season would do wonders for Washington."We've connected on a new offense just like that," McLaurin said. "I know he has a feel for how I run certain routes; I have a feel for how he's going to throw it."5. There are still questions at receiverThe Commanders struggled at receiver last season, largely because of McLaurin's holdout and then injuries to him and Noah Brown. Their depth was tested -- and it failed. Deebo Samuel led the team with 72 receptions and McLaurin caught 38 in 10 games. But eight other receivers combined to catch 61 passes, none more than 16.They believe they have improved their depth by adding veterans Van Jefferson and Dyami Brown, re-signing Treylon Burks and drafting Antonio Williams. But they need someone to emerge as a consistent No. 2 receiver opposite McLaurin.It wasn't evident this spring who it might be. But as with running back, it could be a group assignment unless they add a veteran receiver such as Stefon Diggs or Brandon Aiyuk. Otherwise, a lot hinges on the development of Williams and young receivers Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane.The tight ends are also expected to be more involved in the pass game -- and not only newcomer Chig Okonkwo. Over the past two years, the tight ends, aside from Zach Ertz, wondered how they fit in former OC Kliff Kingsbury's offense. But they all were more involved this spring, which included a practice that featured five tight ends catching scoring passes.Washington's screen game could be more diverse as well. Last season, the Commanders ranked second in receiver screens but finished 15th in tight end screens with only two (they were 19th in running back screens). By adding White and Okonkwo, those numbers should change and add to a more diverse attack.And if that happens, it could mitigate what the unit doesn't (yet) have at receiver.
