Commanders Coaches Deliver Clear Message About Offseason Break

As many teams near the end of mandatory minicamp, now begins a 40-ish-day stretch that is often a coach's scariest time of the year.

When their group of millionaire athletes in their 20s are set free during the peak of summer with no responsibilities for the next month.

Some players stay locked in by working out daily and following a regiment diet, while others may lounge on the couch a bit too long or, God forbid, get into a little too much trouble enjoying the nice weather.

It happens every offseason. But the Washington Commanders staffers are making sure their message gets across before the team disperses into the wild.

Head coach Dan Quinn - the conductor of last season's culture shift that propelled a run to the conference championship game - led the charge in speaking with the inexperienced players about the next steps of the offseason.

"We had a one-on-one meeting over the last week," Quinn said, via the team website. "Where are they? How's it been? And going through that process, what does the next 40 days look like?"

He and general manager Adam Peters seemed pleasantly surprised by the amount of rookies who had intelligent plans for their offseason training and how they'd spend this break.

"If you're already coming in with ideas and thoughts about what you want to get done, you're already moving forward," Quinn said about that bunch.

Then on the practice field, linebackers coach Ken Norton Jr. and personnel analyst Wes Welker pitched their two cents about the players' mindsets during this time away.

As Noah Selby wrote: "[They] gave them some advice for how to approach the dead period. Norton told the players to always be prepared for their moment, because they never know when it's going to happen. Welker talked about "winning time moments," saying they were why it is so important to train at this time of year. He told them to always be ready for those moments because they can make a significant difference in games."

Based on the way last season panned out and this offseason's acquisitions made by the front office, the Commanders' are contenders. But they still have to prove that last year was not a fluke.

Washington has all the necessary pieces to make noise in the NFC again, but it'll need integrity out of each of player from now until training camp in late July to have a chance at exceeding these new lofty expectations.