Commanders made this Washington's best season in decades even after getting routed in NFC title game

Updated Jan. 27, 2025 4:34 p.m. ET

Associated Press

After his Washington Commanders got blown out by Philadelphia in the NFC championship game, coach Dan Quinn told his players there would be plenty of time later to discuss missed opportunities and what went wrong.

“I just wanted them to recognize the brotherhood they created together,” Quinn said.

Quinn and the Commanders created Washington's best season in more than three decades, exceeding all expectations by winning 14 games, including two in the playoffs. A thud of a 55-23 loss to the Eagles ended things on a sour note, but the future seems bright with a franchise quarterback in Jayden Daniels still on his rookie contract and plenty of salary cap space at general manager Adam Peters' disposal to build a perennial contender.

“Just the culture that DQ and Adam set here, we know the standard,” Daniels said. "Next year, we’re obviously going to have new guys come in and stuff like that, so we have to teach them the standard and uphold it to that.”

Daniels is the biggest reason for optimism about an organization that has not had much success for longer than the 24 years he has been alive. The second pick in the draft and an overwhelming favorite to be AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, Daniels has a playoff-high 822 yards passing and consistently showed that he could thrive in pressure situations.

After completing 29 of 48 passes with one touchdown and an interception Sunday, Daniels said he and his teammates would be plenty motivated by how this season ended.

“I don’t want to have a feeling like this again,” Daniels said. "But you have to deal with it, move on from it.”

The Commanders have some big decisions to make in the coming months, with only 34 players under contract for 2025 and some key contributors set to be free agents. That group includes six-time All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner and tight end Zach Ertz, each of whom is 34.

Ertz, who had a game-high 11 catches and 104 yards against the Eagles, was drawn to Washington by Quinn and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and believes the coaching staff is a big reason for the team fast-forwarding what many thought was the start of a rebuild.

“It’s a testament to DQ, the environment that he’s created in a short amount of time,” Ertz said. “He brings energy every day. He’s got good people on his staff, good people that push us every day to be at our best.”

According to Over the Cap, which tracks NFL teams' cap space and contracts, the Commanders have more than $87 million in room — the third most in the league. And now they might not need to overpay to attract talent.

In a series of social media posts Monday, team co-owner Magic Johnson said, “With a revitalized spirit in the locker room, transformative play on the field and the resurgence of this brand, the Commanders are a team that players want to be a part of.”

Running back Austin Ekeler, who is signed through next season, believes this season built a strong foundation for what is to come, even given how it ended.

“I’m proud of the development that we’ve had this year and the culture setting that’s definitely step one,” Ekeler said. “So, we have that down, and now it’s a feeling of disappointment but also proud of the guys and what we’ve been able to accomplish this year.”

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AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

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