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PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 04: Head coach Dan Quinn of the Washington Commanders reacts during the second quarter of the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on January 04, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

The Washington Commanders are just 17 months removed from playing to go to the Super Bowl, but coach Dan Quinn is about to enter a potential make-or-break season.

Quinn is squarely on the hot seat and could be out if the Commanders don’t bounce back after their 5-12 season, according to Jason La Canfora of Sports Boom.

Washington dealt with an array of injuries, including to franchise quarterback Jayden Daniels, amid its disappointing regression in 2025.

The fall-back season made fans forget Quinn and Daniels’ first season, where they teamed up to go 12-5 and win two playoff games for the first time since 1991 before falling 55-23 to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game.

Jason La Canfora: Dan Quinn, in ‘Make-or-Break Scenario’

It wasn’t long ago that fans of the Dallas Cowboys were lamenting letting Quinn go to Washington. Yet, the perception is now that Quinn could be the first coach to go if the Commanders get off to a slow start in 2027.

“While Washington’s coach, Dan Quinn, isn’t mentioned as often as others who are coaching for their jobs in the upcoming season, several executives from rival clubs believe he is in a make-or-break scenario,” La Canfora wrote for Sports Boom. “Commanders general manager Adam Peters wields considerable power with ownership, and Quinn’s staff was largely gutted this offseason, including both of his coordinators.”

La Canfora is, of course, referencing the departure of both Kliff Kingsbury and Joe Whitt, the latter of of whom Quinn stripped of his play-calling duties in November last year.

The longtime NFL insider read between the lines about what the sweeping coaching changes mean for Quinn’s future in the nation’s capital.

“Quinn was hired largely for his success as a defensive coordinator, but that unit suffered in both years in Washington, and he is no longer installing his own defense and overseeing that unit,” La Canfora wrote. “When a team makes as sweeping staff changes as Washington did, the industry views that as putting the head coach on notice.”

Sean McDermott is a Name to Watch if the Commanders Fire Dan Quinn

Washington’s ownership group of Josh Harris and David Blitzer are well versed at running sports franchises, since they co-own both the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and NHL’s New Jersey Devils.

They have been renowned for their patience but also seem to prefer veteran coaches, since Doc Rivers and Nick Nurse have coached the Sixers and Sheldon Keefe and Lindy Ruff have been Devils bench bosses.

So if Quinn is fired, there is only one name that would come to mind for his replacement.

“Keep an eye on [former Bills head coach] Sean McDermott there next year,” one longtime NFL personnel executive told SportsBoom. “Just remember who told you first.”

Of course, McDermott was let go by the Buffalo Bills after they fell to the Denver Broncos in overtime in the AFC Divisional Round this January.

But Commanders fans would do backflips over McDermott’s record, since he went 98-50 and made the playoffs in eight of his nine seasons and won at least one postseason game six times despite failing to reach the Super Bowl.