Dan Quinn Plans on 'Having a Blast and Kicking Ass' as Commanders Head Coach

A few weeks after getting the job, Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn attempted to further set the tone for his tenure.

"I do see the glass as half-full," he said Wednesday of his mentality toward the job on NFL Network's The Insiders. "Why wouldn't I be fired up? I got one of 32 jobs in the world. I plan on having a blast and kicking ass and doing the whole thing and enjoying the people I'm doing it with."

Quinn added he has a "deeper sense of gratitude and appreciation for the job" now that he's in his second go-round. He coached the Atlanta Falcons for five-plus seasons before returning to the coordinator ranks with the Dallas Cowboys.

During the interview, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport asked Quinn how Washington is broadly approaching the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NFL draft. Many expect the team to select a quarterback, with Bleacher Report's most recent mock projecting a trade up to the No. 1 spot so Washington could select USC's Caleb Williams.

Quinn said he and team officials have yet to decide on any course at such an early stage in the pre-draft process.

In general, some fans might have felt a bit let down by the outcome to Washington's coaching search.

From the outside, it certainly looked like the Commanders preferred Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson over any other candidate until he backed out, which prompted dueling narratives. But general manager Adam Peters was emphatic in how much internal buy-in there was with Quinn.

"Every time we spoke with Dan, it became more and more clear that he was the guy," he said to ESPN's John Keim. "Both times it was like we were speaking the same language. It was really, really cool, had a great connection, had a great shared vision, so it was almost right away that I knew Dan would be a great coach for us."

It's unclear if "having a blast and kicking ass" was part of that "shared vision."