The Washington Commanders' locker room wasn't as lively as it was for the past six months. Their magical 2024 season ended with a 55-23 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship, meaning that it was time to start packing up for the offseason and saying goodbye to teammates, some of whom won't be with the team in March.
But it wasn't all bad as the players filed in throughout the afternoon to pack up their belongings. There was some sense of accomplishment that the team had made it further than any Washington team in recent memory, as well as optimism for what's to come next.
"Tons of positive things you can take away," said guard Nick Allegretti. "You don't ever want to do the 'moral victory.' Tough loss yesterday, but it was a special season, special group of guys. I appreciate the whole organization for what they put in to change this place."
While the Commanders fell short of their goal of reaching the Super Bowl for the first time in over three decades, it's clear that the standard has swung in the opposite direction from a year ago. Teams that finish 4-13 don't usually compete for playoff spots, let alone the NFC Championship the following season.
And yet that's what the Commanders did in 2024 by going 12-5 -- their best record since 1991 -- behind Offensive Rookie of the Year finalist Jayden Daniels. Stability at quarterback, a position the franchise struggled to get right for years, is the most notable change. Daniels produced historic numbers for a rookie, including a franchise-best 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns in the regular season, and provided hope for long-term success for the offense as long as he is in the backfield.
But Washington's turnaround comes from more than an exciting rookie quarterback. The players have bought into Quinn's new culture based on competition and brotherhood. Veterans like Austin Ekeler, Zach Ertz and Bobby Wagner came in to help set a new standard of how to win and prepare for games. They not only filled that role but also became impactful players for the team on the field. Wagner led the team in tackles, while Ekeler and Ertz combined for 1,387 yards and 11 touchdowns.
The change was stark for the players who were around either last season or longer.
"The standard is to have a chance to win the Super Bowl," wide receiver Terry McLaurin said outside the locker room. "We fell short of that, but that doesn't take away from the great people we had in this locker room and what we built here. It's something to build off of going into next year."
Like last year, the Commanders will undergo a significant overhaul to prepare for the 2025 season. Twenty-eight players will be free agents in March. While the Commanders will certainly try to retain some of them, it's a guarantee they will not have the same group that pulled off moments like the Hail Mary over the Chicago Bears, taking down the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football and beating the Detroit Lions at home in the Divisional round.
It's a bitter reality for people like Tress Way, the longest-tenured player on the roster, not just for the moments on the field but also for the moments off it. The players bonded in a way that Way had not experienced before, which makes this year's locker room cleanout different from previous years.
"Just the sheer team aspect of how it was this year," Way said. "Just how everybody loved one another, fed off one another, how much fun it was, the highs, the lows."
Regardless of who returns for next season, the players know they set a standard for the organization. The expectations are no longer to make the postseason but to make a deep run in January and compete to play in the Super Bowl. That comes as a credit to the players buying into the messages that Quinn and general manager Adam Peters delivered to them.
"Really proud of this team and what they did and this group of men," Peters said. "Just really thankful for them and how much work they put in."
Quinn knows that this year's team started something that will last years.
"It'll be a really important thing from now, and in 20 years, we'll look back and say, 'Okay, in 2024, that began,'" Quinn said. "How did it grow stronger? It will grow stronger because it's the people that live it. If it's just a sign on the wall, then you don't really have one. You have to live it."
For all the things the Commanders had in 2024, Quinn believes scars were the one thing they still needed for the future. They earned them during the loss to the Eagles, and Quinn said Monday that "you truly don't know who you are until you get your ass knocked down and see how you get back up. And if I know anything about our team, they will absolutely get up swinging."
The players were "bummed," as Way described it, after the loss, but none of them were deterred from trying to get back to that point next season.
"I don't like losing," Daniels said. "I think that, as a competitor, anybody in this profession, they don't like losing. You go out there and you learn from it, move on.
"We've awoken a sleeping giant," he said. "Hopefully we can keep building on that next year. We're going to need all their support when the season comes back around."