Who do you think was the best NFL head coaching hire in the past five seasons?
Well, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell took those 37 hires and attempted the impossible. Barnwell evaluated and graded the 37 hires, then ranked them in order. Washington Commanders fans, before you look further down, where do you think Commanders head coach Dan Quinn’s hiring in 2024 ranks for Barnwell?
One reason this is an impossible task is that each coach received a different set of players when they took their jobs. Another reason is some coaches will now have five years under their belts, while the other extreme is that Barnwell was grading some who had only been hired one season in their new job. Commanders Wire will provide you with Barnwell’s top five, along with how he ranked Dan Quinn and Barnwell’s reasoning. Here is the link to read the entire article and see the full list of 37.
10. Dan Quinn, Washington Commanders 17-17 (.500) 2 Seasons
What a difference a year makes. Twelve months ago, Quinn was fresh off a trip to the NFC Championship Game, having won as many playoff games in his first season with the Commanders as the franchise had claimed over the prior 30 years. Jayden Daniels’ fantastic rookie campaign played a significant role, but Quinn nailed his fourth-down decision-making to help the offense blossom, and the former Falcons coach got the most out of the many veterans added to his roster by GM Adam Peters.
Things have changed. Daniels struggled through an injury-hit 2025, but Quinn’s defense completely collapsed in Year 2. The Commanders ranked 30th in EPA per play and points allowed per drive, as they were easily stretched by any offense with a pulse. Quinn wasn’t able to fix the problems during the season, and the Commanders shook things up by moving on from offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and defensive coordinator Joe Whitt.
Quinn deserves more time to prove that 2025 was an anomaly, but Falcons fans will point out that their former coach peaked early in his Atlanta tenure and never reached those heights again.
As for the coaches ranked ahead of Quinn, here’s the complete top 10.
- 1. Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions
- 2. Nick Siranni, Philadelphia Eagles
- 3. Mike Macdonald, Seattle Seahawks
- 4. Mike Vrabel, New England Patriots
- 5. DeMeco Ryans, Houston Texans
- 6. Sean Payton, Denver Broncos
- 7. Kevin O’Connell, Minnesota Vikings
- 8. Ben Johnson, Chicago Bears
- 9. Jim Harbaugh, Los Angeles Chargers
- 10. Dan Quinn, Washington Commanders
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Washington Commanders: Where does Dan Quinn’s hiring rank?
