The Washington Commanders went to the 2024 NFC championship game after going 12-5 in the regular season and winning two playoff games. Now their goal is to go past the Eagles and win the 2025 NFC Champions as the they worked hard to get there in 2024 now comes the 2025.
Let’s look back on how they built a team in 2024 that would be a playoffs for years to come.
It’s the furthest the team has advanced in more than three decades, and it comes after going 4-13 in 2023. This turnaround is the result of a complete organizational overhaul that began with the firing of Ron Rivera and hiring of new general manager Adam Peters and coach Dan Quinn.
Signing veterans such as Bobby Wagner and Zach Ertz and drafting Jayden Daniels set the stage for one of the most surprising seasons in franchise history.
Here’s how it all happened.
Jan. 7, 2024
A 38-10 home loss to Dallas on coach Ron Rivera’s 62nd birthday clinched the second pick in the draft and opened the door to get the organization’s quarterback of the future.
Jan. 8, 2024
Rivera was fired as expected after four seasons as head of football operations, a stint that included one playoff appearance when Washington won the NFC East with a 7-9 record in 2020.
Controlling owner Josh Harris, whose group bought the team from Dan Snyder and family in 2023 for a North American professional sports record $6.05 billion, said: “Clearly, we weren’t good enough this year. We didn’t get it done on the field, and so we’ve decided to go into a new direction.”
Longtime NBA executive Bob Myers and former Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman were contracted to assist Harris and co-owners Magic Johnson, Mitch Rales and David Blitzer in the GM and coach searches. Harris predicted a “thorough but rapid” process.
Jan. 12, 2024
It did not take long for ownership to find its new head football executive, reaching an agreement with Peters to become general manager. The Commanders announced the hire a few days later.
Peters was one of two finalists along with Chicago’s Ian Cunningham. The 44-year-old joined Washington after spending the previous three seasons with San Francisco as an assistant to John Lynch.
Jan. 30, 2024
Detroit offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, considered one of the top candidates to coach the Commanders, informed them and other teams he was staying with the Lions.
Quinn interviewed for the job the same day at a hotel in the ritzy Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, with defensive coordinators Aaron Glenn of the Lions and Mike Macdonald of the Baltimore Ravens also in the mix. The next day, the Seattle Seahawks hired Macdonald to succeed Pete Carroll as coach.
Feb. 1, 2024
The Commanders turned quickly to Quinn, reaching a deal to hire the former Atlanta Falcons coach who ran the Dallas Cowboys defense from 2021-23. He signed his contract a couple of days later.
Harris said Quinn “rightfully earned a reputation as one of the NFL’s top defensive minds, building tough, explosive and dynamic teams that compete hard … but most importantly, he is an incredible leader who brings out the best in his players, coaches and staff.”
Feb. 4, 2024
Peters and Quinn made the first assistant coaching additions, agreeing to hire Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator and Joe Whitt Jr. as defensive coordinator. Before the Commanders hired Quinn, Kingsbury planned to join Antonio Pierce’s staff with the Las Vegas Raiders, but he could not reach a deal and told them he decided to pursue other options.
