- 14 hours ago
Stefon Diggs is officially signed to the Washington Commanders and Kevin Sheehan reacts to Dan Quinn’s press conference where he talks about Stefon Diggs joining the Commanders, what his role in the offense will be and how they plan to catch him up to speed in the new offense.
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00:00All right, so let's talk about Quinn's answers to basically every single question
00:06with the exception of one on the acquisition of Stephon Diggs.
00:10This was Dan Quinn on what Diggs brings to the offense.
00:15Hey, Dan, with Stephon, what does he bring to this offense?
00:18And when you're watching film, what does he still does at a higher level?
00:22Yeah, I think when you see him work inside, John, inside as a slot player,
00:27he's got great feel, he's a great competitor.
00:30But those are a few of the things, you know, that jump out to us.
00:34He's somebody certainly that can move the chains and, like, how important that is
00:38to have somebody that has the detail of option routes and, you know, specifics,
00:43but specifically inside, man, is he an effective player in that way?
00:49Yeah, so, I mean, that was a bit of a tell.
00:52I mean, I think in the Blau offense, there was a good possibility that before the acquisition of Diggs,
00:58depending on the readiness of Antonio Williams and others, we would see Terry a lot in the slot.
01:05You know, again, I've mentioned this before, Terry being and working from the slot is not a new thing in
01:11his career.
01:12Scott Turner did it a bunch with Terry McLaurin, getting him in matchups that were favorable for the offense.
01:19But Diggs inside at this point with, you know, great feel, as Quinn said, great competitor.
01:27Also, add to that, great hands.
01:30He catches everything and he moves the chains.
01:34You know, he will be a real chain mover on third and four, third and five, working in the middle
01:41of the field versus zone or man.
01:45Going to be so interesting to watch that.
01:47But, all right, this was Dan Quinn on the plan for Diggs over the next couple of practices.
01:56Stefan, what is sort of the plan for him today, the next couple of days as you kind of integrate?
02:01And so, yesterday, I got a chance to meet and visit with him some.
02:05So, we'll start working him in slowly.
02:07And as we get more accustomed, like, honestly, playbook-wise scheme to go.
02:12So, he's in fantastic shape.
02:14So, really just today and tomorrow, you know, kind of start building up and some of the reps that he's
02:20comfortable with.
02:21And then we'll start adding from there.
02:24Good nugget there.
02:26He's in fantastic shape.
02:28He's had quite the offseason, you know, battling in court, the felony strangulation charge, the misdemeanor assault charge.
02:37You know, his freedom was at stake during that trial.
02:44But, good to hear that he is in great shape.
02:47This was Quinn with more on what Diggs will bring to the offense.
02:53Is having, like, adding a player like that due for the offense, especially, obviously, in the past game?
02:58Yeah, and you've heard us say that, like Adam has said, and I have two that were pleased with the
03:01receiver group as a whole.
03:02And so, to add another player into it, like, man, you want to talk about competitive nature and where to
03:08go?
03:08Like, Steph's at the very, you know, high list of competitors.
03:13And so, like, to add somebody like that to the group, that's a really big deal for us.
03:16So, I'm really excited to work with him.
03:20Pretty rare you get to coach two brothers, you know.
03:22So, I got a cool text from little brother last night about the impact he's had and the amazing leader
03:27that his older brother has been and, you know, pushed him into things.
03:30So, yeah, I think that's, like, you don't get to do that very often.
03:33And so, I'm very much looking forward to, you know, get the chance to coach Steph and build that relationship
03:39with him.
03:40He's talking about Trayvon Diggs, the corner who played for Quinn in Dallas.
03:44A lot of people have, you know, considered Stefan Diggs and his brother, younger brother, Trayvon Diggs, to be some
03:51sort of package deal.
03:52That was never necessarily, I don't think, a part of it.
03:55But, again, you know, there's a theme here.
04:00And this is a theme when anybody talks about Stefan Diggs.
04:05Bob Malloy, yesterday, his longtime coach at Good Counsel, said, you know, competitor just loves football, loves to compete, hates
04:16to lose.
04:16You've already heard it a couple of times from Quinn.
04:19I mean, you're getting an alpha, you know, on offense.
04:22Terry is an alpha, I'm not saying he isn't, but you're going to have a couple of them out there.
04:28This was Quinn being asked about whether or not there will be some sort of pitch count for Diggs.
04:34You know, last year, the snap count was relatively or comparatively low to number one receivers in the league.
04:42But a lot of that had to do with him coming off the 2024 ACL injury in Houston.
04:47But Quinn was asked about Diggs and a pitch count this year.
04:53Coming off an injury, New England had him play about 55% of the snaps.
04:56Do you anticipate him being on any kind of pitch count this year?
04:59We haven't gone through that far yet, you know, to see packages, what we play, how we feature it.
05:04So we haven't, you know, dug down into that yet.
05:08I just know he's in, like, you know, great shape.
05:10And we're ready to start building him in.
05:12But as far as how much and where, we haven't gone down that road yet.
05:17Another reference to him being in great shape.
05:19This was Quinn on why it was so important to find another wide receiver.
05:26I know you kind of just touched on it, but with Stefan, as you guys have talked a lot, you
05:30really like the guys in the room.
05:32Why did you find it important to go out, spend the money, and get another guy?
05:35Yeah, I think that's the nature of competing, right, to say, okay, what ways can we help the team get
05:40better?
05:41And that's always at the forefront of Adam and his thinking and at receiver or at any position.
05:47So we like the competitive makeup of the group.
05:49And so this just made a lot of sense, you know, for us to add Steph here.
05:53And like I said, we're really pumped to get started with him.
05:56But I was excited to hear more and more, you know, about him, about, you know, the teammate, the leader.
06:02And so, like, those things are cool, too.
06:05Yeah, you know, we had somebody on from WEEI in Boston yesterday.
06:12And it's the second or third time I've heard it that the team really liked Stefan Diggs in New England
06:20last year.
06:21And he is, you know, a guy that is going to be, let's just say it's not hard to get
06:29him to open up,
06:30to tell you how he really feels.
06:33There's no sugarcoating it with him.
06:35But in that first year, in that first maybe two years, Stefan Diggs, everybody understands, is a badass on game
06:45days.
06:45And he loves football and football season.
06:50So you got somebody that you're adding to the room.
06:54Like I said earlier in the show, this is a known.
06:58Everything else was a maybe.
07:01Traylon Burks is a maybe.
07:03Deami Brown, even though we know what he is, but in terms of rising up to being, to actually filling
07:09a number two spot, maybe.
07:12Jalen Lane, Luke McCaffrey, Antonio Williams, Van Jefferson, maybes.
07:18Stefan Diggs isn't a maybe.
07:20This was Quinn on vetting all of the other stuff, the off-field stuff that Stefan Diggs typically, you know,
07:30has sort of hanging off his overall resume.
07:35This was Quinn on that.
07:37DQ, with Steph, I know this offseason he had some off-the-field issues.
07:41And I know that anytime that kind of stuff happens, it's always a question of if the league office may
07:45have any suspensions or things of that nature.
07:47I know character is important to you guys.
07:48Because what went into vetting that side of things before bringing them in?
07:51And what made you guys so confident that it wouldn't be a issue?
07:53Yeah, for Steph or any of the guys, we've got a really good process, you know, that we go through
07:57when we bring players in.
07:59And so we were certainly comfortable, you know, with that process.
08:03And we're excited to have them.
08:05So not much of an answer there.
08:08You know, Quinn's, I'm sure, not the guy, you know, spearheading the vetting process when it comes to the adding
08:14of a player to the roster.
08:16That is a front office responsibility.
08:19Of course, Quinn, I'm sure, can make a lot of calls on behalf.
08:23Look, the trial that he went through, he was found not guilty on all counts.
08:28Then the league had to weigh in on whether or not there would be anything associated with conduct detrimental.
08:36They weighed in and said, no suspension, no punishment whatsoever.
08:41And that cleared the way.
08:43You know, if I didn't say this yesterday, because I don't think I did, and I think it was something
08:49that made this whole thing come together.
08:52You know, once Ayuk was essentially off the board, you know, when he left the reservation two months ago and
09:00became kind of off the board, that made it so much easier for not only the team to think about
09:08Diggs, but for Diggs to think about the team.
09:12Because Stefan Diggs, at 32 years old, wasn't going to sign with a team that, I say that, I don't
09:20know that for sure, but I'm sure he didn't want to be a number three.
09:26So, if there was a chance that Ayuk was going to be added to the roster, Diggs perhaps would have
09:33looked elsewhere.
09:36This was, what was next?
09:39This was Quinn talking about just Diggs, his connection with the players already.
09:45This was Dan Quinn on that.
09:47Dan, you've mentioned the leadership aspect of it multiple times.
09:51What in particular have you learned about him that makes that kind of a bright spot?
09:56Yeah, I think just, like, early connections with people.
09:59There was definitely a buzz about it, but he had more connections here than even I thought.
10:03Like, obviously, being here, but I'm talking about player-wise, who's on the team.
10:06And so, that's not that normal, you know, where, like, this guy, this guy, when you haven't played with them
10:13before.
10:13So, people speak to, like, you know, the work ethic, the practice ethic.
10:18And so, those are some of the things I'm, like, very much looking forward to seeing.
10:22Like, those are things, that's who you are.
10:24You know, it's not something that doesn't travel.
10:26And so, we're excited to add that type of competitor to our group.
10:31You know, I'm trying to think of the players that he's played with.
10:34Obviously, he played with Tunsil in Houston in 24 before he got hurt, right?
10:40He knows the Maryland guys that were at it, I'm sure, even though they're not from the same class.
10:45I would imagine that he knows Chig and knows Nick Cross.
10:50And probably works out at some point during the course of the year when he's home with some of those
10:54guys.
10:54Who else did he, has he played with?
10:58Kay Levon Chason.
10:59Chason, obviously, from New England last year.
11:02Yes.
11:02Yeah.
11:05So, that would be...
11:07He's already been working out, like, privately.
11:10He was working out with a receiver coach up here.
11:12I remember Van Jefferson was also spotted at that workout along with Trey Burks.
11:17So, a lot of receivers have already gotten a chance to work with him, too.
11:22This was Quinn on whether or not something needs to be said to the other wide receivers, to the wide
11:30receiver room, when you add a guy like Diggs.
11:33Hey, Dan.
11:34What, if any, conversations do you have with the rest of the wide receiver room when you bring in a
11:37player of Steph's caliber?
11:40We don't have any in that way.
11:42Like, kind of the central theme of where we're at is competing.
11:46But, it's a natural reaction.
11:47Like, they're all human.
11:48That's the same process.
11:49JP, draft night, you know, free agency, you know, there.
11:53But, like, that's also the nature of what we do and how we do it.
11:56So, they all know, like, what we're about and how we do things.
12:00So, in some instances, you'd want to say some things.
12:04Other times, you don't.
12:05But, in this instance, there was no need to.
12:09Yeah, that's a good question.
12:11Like, how, you know, the receivers coach, the OC, the head coach.
12:17When you bring in a player that is a headline acquisition, do you have to sit down with everybody and
12:24say, hey, we're doing this.
12:27It isn't because we don't believe in all of you guys, but it is going to raise the level of
12:32competition in this room.
12:35And, he's been a player that's done it in the past, but he's going to have to compete, too.
12:39We're not handing him anything.
12:40I don't know.
12:40I'm just thinking out loud here.
12:43But, sometimes you don't have to say anything.
12:45These guys are pros.
12:47I mean, they know.
12:49This was Quinn on the addition of Diggs helping out the defense, especially the secondary.
12:57Good morning again, Coach.
12:58Good morning.
12:58So, bringing in a wide receiver like Stephon Diggs, and I know we focus a lot on the wide receiver
13:04room, but how does that also elevate the competitiveness in your defensive background?
13:08Yes.
13:10I think you can find a feel like Mikey and Amik so far.
13:15Like, that's obvious, like, you know, over the time.
13:19And so, to add another person to go battling for it, like, I love seeing Luke and Mikey just, like,
13:26battling for it the other day in the red zone period.
13:28So, to add another competitor into that spot, this is a really skilled receiver.
13:33He's got great route running ability.
13:34So, when you practice against that, like, you can't help but, you know, improve your own game.
13:40So, those are the give and takes that I like when we go good on good as often as we
13:44can.
13:45And as we build it together with Steph, like, I'm excited to see, you know, the insights that he can
13:50share across the ball.
13:52Like, that's where teammates can really explore, hey, man, you're giving this away.
13:56This is something I see that was hard to defend.
13:58And so, coaches do it.
14:00But when the players start doing it, that's when you can really elevate the team.
14:05All right.
14:06And then Quinn was asked about his experience coaching against Diggs.
14:13Here's what he said.
14:15Dan, I presume you coached against Stephon Diggs at some point.
14:18Do you recall any situations or games that stood out going against him?
14:22Yeah, too many, unfortunately.
14:24But I think just, like, his suddenness inside.
14:28Like, that's – when you're a slot that's, you know, hard to guard,
14:32especially in, like, when you have to deny the ball.
14:34You know, some of the third downs where you don't want space and you want to attach to somebody
14:37and play man-to-man and, hey, man, we're going to try to deny him here.
14:40When you have quickness and you can, you know, beat somebody,
14:43when you're playing man-to-man, there's explosive plays after that.
14:46Oftentimes in zone, you know, a person can catch it, but, you know, you're going to see it.
14:51It might be a first down.
14:52With him, man-to-man, you better be ready because if he does beat you across your face
14:56or you lose leverage, like, this is going to be an explosive play.
14:59I'd say that every throw to him is short.
15:01But you better know how you're going to bracket him, where you're going to go.
15:05So those are significant game planning, you know, procedures that you go through.
15:10Dan Quinn, I'm sure in Seattle, in Seattle, when he was a D, no, it would have been in Atlanta
15:19against Minnesota.
15:20It would have been in Dallas against probably Buffalo.
15:25I mean, probably not a lot of, you know, matchups against Diggs.
15:30Diggs, but, you know, you heard him kind of talk, and this has been a bit of the theme
15:36too, that he's going to play a lot inside.
15:39Like, he is, you know, he's inside and he's a guy that can move the sticks against man coverage,
15:45against sticky man coverage.
15:47Hard to stick with him.
15:49You know, trying not to give a guy like Diggs space.
15:52Quick feet, really good feel.
15:54Still, obviously, a lot of experience to shake.
15:57I saw a cut-up that somebody put on Twitter yesterday of all of the third-down conversions
16:04that he had last year in New England, and a lot of them were short third-down throws.
16:10But, man, he does get immediate separation even when the defensive back is trying to hover
16:17and trying to stick to him and playing real, you know, up-at-the-line-of-scrimmage man coverage
16:26against him.
16:27He's still got that ability.
16:29All right, Quinn was asked about whether or not Diggs will play in the preseason.
16:34You'll hear that answer coming up.
16:36There was a few more, including, did the way Diggs play with May last year, Drake May,
16:44specifically factor into why he's in D.C. now.
16:48So a little bit more of Dan Quinn on Stephon Diggs when we return.
16:52And this is a way-too-early question since he hasn't even practiced yet.
16:56But considering there's going to be a ramp-up period,
16:59does playing him in the preseason make more sense than it would be like
17:02if he already had been here and maybe not?
17:04Yeah, we haven't hit on any of that yet.
17:05We'll kind of have some of those discussions going into the next block.
17:08So the team will rock it today, tomorrow, and then Sunday, the players have off.
17:13And that's kind of where we'll start building, you know, who would do what and where.
17:1817 questions for Dan Quinn this morning at his pre-practice press conference.
17:26And 15 of them, not 16, 15 of them were about the new receiver, Stephon Diggs.
17:33You heard what he said about playing Diggs in the preseason when Ben asked him.
17:38We won't get those answers probably until late next week, I would imagine.
17:43How about will they continue to look at the wide receiver market?
17:48Here's what Dan Quinn said.
17:49Do you guys anticipate at this point right now just to be your good,
17:54but your wide receiver room bringing in Steph?
17:56Or is it something you still will survey and look and see if there's other help out there?
18:00Yeah, that's a good question.
18:01I would say that's part of Adam's nature, you know, like to see what's there, how does it go.
18:05But we like the group.
18:07We like seeing where we're at.
18:08Adding Steph to it is a big deal.
18:11But I think as a competitor, like you don't ever, you know, say, no, we're not done.
18:17We're not looking.
18:17So we are happy with the group.
18:20I think that's fair to say.
18:24Then another question just for Quinn about adding Diggs.
18:30Good morning, Coach.
18:32With Steph in tow now, how do you feel?
18:34How does Jaden feel about the offense overall now?
18:37Can you repeat the first part with Steph?
18:39Yeah, with Steph in tow now on the team.
18:41Oh, understood.
18:42How do you feel about, how do you and Jaden feel about the offense?
18:45Is it a different feeling?
18:46Yeah, I can't speak for Jay, but what I can speak for me, I love, you know, some of the
18:52uniqueness that Steph has in his game as a slot player.
18:55When you have an accurate passer, like we do with Jaden, the ability to deliver the ball to the right
19:00location against this specific coverage, that's a really big deal.
19:03And I like they have a connection already, you know, prior to Steph coming in.
19:08They didn't meet each other today for the first time.
19:10So knowing that they'll put the work in over this month, that's a big deal.
19:14And I think for us, it's not impossible to do it, you know, the first week of September.
19:19Sometimes that happens at the end of a camp.
19:20But to have Steph here now and to build with the team, that's definitely an advantage, you know, as we're
19:25leading up into the season.
19:26So I'm certainly pleased as a coach that we get reps and time to build team chemistry, build the offense
19:33together, with him being a big part of it.
19:36I wonder when they threw with one another.
19:39Do you think it was this summer, last summer, maybe before his rookie year?
19:43Who knows?
19:45But he was clear that this isn't the first time they've gotten together and thrown with each other.
19:52How about, Quinn, on the way Diggs played with Drake May last year, did that factor into the acquisition of
20:02Stephon Diggs?
20:05Coach, when you're evaluating Steph, looking back to last year, seeing what he did with Drake May, same class as
20:10Jaden, did that go into the process at all?
20:12Well, if so, how much?
20:14It did not.
20:15He's got a nice body of work of how he plays.
20:18And to see him healthy and, you know, doing his thing last year, I thought it really showed, man, like
20:23elite-level competitor, you know, productive.
20:26But, no, it did not factor in.
20:28He's always been somebody that, you know, quarterback was friendly with because the precision, the locations, you know, how to
20:37get open.
20:38So, yeah, this is a real significant guy for us.
20:43And then, you know, the last one about Diggs was, will it affect the playing time of some of their
20:51other players in that wide receiver room?
20:54You'll hear the question and Quinn's answer.
20:58Dan, you mentioned Stephon and how you had to defend him before and mentioned the slot.
21:03What does his presence do in terms of reps, playing time, future for Antonio Williams, Luke, Jalen Lane, the guys
21:09you draft who typically are playing inside?
21:12Yeah.
21:12So, we'll work through that over the next month, Ben.
21:15And he won't exclusively play just the slot.
21:19But that does, you know, bring up the question of how we'd feature guys, two receivers, three receivers, who'd play
21:24in, what down and distances.
21:26So, we'll work through that.
21:27That's why it is nice to have him here today and begin that process together.
21:32But it's also kind of like ramping up our competition in a group that I like, who they stand for.
21:37Like, you know, like I like what that feels like, you know, to see where it plays out, so to
21:42speak.
21:42So, as the competitor coach in me, like, it's good.
21:47And so, those are good things that you want to figure out.
21:50All right.
21:52That was pretty much all of Dan Quinn on Stefan Diggs.
21:58Look, if Antonio Williams or Luke McCaffrey or someone else was really, really, you know, playing at a level where
22:07they felt confident.
22:08I shouldn't even say playing at a level because they haven't played anything yet this year.
22:12But if they were truly confident in anyone else's ability to step on the field in Philadelphia in week one
22:21and be confident that it would go well, you probably wouldn't have Diggs here.
22:28It doesn't mean that they don't feel like Luke McCaffrey or Antonio Williams, who's only a rookie.
22:35But he wasn't a first-round pick.
22:37And I think sometimes we get carried away with, well, Antonio Williams, just plug him in.
22:40And he's the slot, but he's also versatile.
22:43He's going to be the number two targeted guy on the team.
22:45I heard that a few weeks ago from some of you.
22:48It may be the truth, but more likely that's a couple of years down the road, a year or two
22:54down the road.
22:56If they felt great about putting what they had in their room already, putting a portion of that out on
23:04the field to start the 2026 season, regular season, then Diggs wouldn't be here.
23:09It doesn't mean that they're not medium or long-term confident about what they have in their room, but short
23:16-term confident as in 2026, they needed something else.
23:21That's why they went and got him.
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