Dan Quinn- Meet the Candidate- Part 5 of 12

[ProcessBlue2]

I know, I know. He is still going to be a candidate this cycle..

Dan Quinn, DC- Dallas Cowboys

Again, I know. Half of you are ready to punch your phone or computer in disgust right now. As a person who is married to an Atlanta Falcons fan, I understand. So, once you are finished with your temper tantrum, go get some water and come back and let’s talk about this.

                The Panthers aren’t going to be competing anytime in next 3 years minimum. The team and fan base are going through a cultural crisis. A few seasons at or around .500 would do this team good to build a foundation for something. What this team needs is stability and direction. While I agree that there are better candidates to bring that here, let’s look at why Quinn could be that guy to at least stop the bleeding; something Tepper should have done by hiring Steve Wilks a year ago. Wilks may not have been the guy to lead the Panthers to the promised land, but he could have been the guy to make them competitive enough to bring that guy to Charlotte.

                53-year-old Dan Quinn was born in Morristown, NJ. He was a 4-year starter on the Defensive Line for DIII Salisbury University from 1989 to 1993. From 1994 to 2000 he would serve as DL Coach at William & Mary, VMI, and Hofstra, serving as DC in his final year with the latter. In 2001 he was brought to the NFL by Steve Mariucci who hired him as DL Coach for the 49ers. He would join Saban as DL coach in Miami in 05’ and 06’ and the same role for the Jets in 2007 and 2008. In 2009, Jim Mora Jr hired Quinn as Assistant HC and DL Coach and he held the same position in 2010 during the transition to Pete Carroll.

                In 2011, Quinn left Carroll and the Seahawks to serve as DC for the Florida Gators that year and the following season. In 2013, Carroll hired Quinn to return to Seattle as DC after the departure of Gus Bradley to the Jaguars. The two would win back to back NFC Championships and a Super Bowl together with Quinn’s defense ranking 1^st in the NFL both seasons.  In 2015, Dan Quinn would accept the role of Head Coach of the Atlanta Falcons.

                Quinn would start with an 8-8 season, and the only team to beat the 15-1 Panthers in the regular season. This would be followed by a 11-5 that would take the Falcons to a Super Bowl loss in one of the most infamous blown leads in NFL history. The following year the Falcons would go 10-6 but would lose a heartbreaker 15-10 to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Eagles in Philadelphia. The following two seasons would end in 7-9 records as injuries and close losses piled up. After a 0-5 start in 2020, Dan Quinn and GM Tom Dimitroff were fired during the season. Quinn would finish 43-42 with a 3-2 post season record, 1 conference championship and 1 divisional title over nearly 5.5 seasons. Despite his Defensive acumen, the Falcons would never finish Top 10 in Total Defense from 2015 to 2019 but would finish Top 10 in Total Offense in every one of those years. A lot of credit for that is given to OCs Kyle Shanahan, Steve Sarkisian, and Dirk Koetter.

                In 2021, Quinn joined Mike McCarthy in Dallas as Defensive Coordinator after McCarthy fired Mike Nolan. In 2021, Quinn improved the Dallas Defense from 23^rd the season before to 19^th. In 2022, the Defense would improve to 12^th, and currently it sits at 6^th in the NFL in 2023.

                Its unclear if Quinn’s fate had been different with just a few close games in 2018 and 2019 but the 2020 start sealed his fate. Many believe that Quinn deserves another shot. He helped Carroll turn a mess around in Seattle and would point the Falcons in the right direction after two terrible seasons from Mike Smith in 2013 and 2014. Many people point to his coordinators and GM Thomas Dimitroff for his real source of success. (Speaking of Dimitroff, he is apparently looking to get back into a GM role somewhere and has ties to Quinn and Belichick- wink-wink. Right now, he is running a Sports Analytics Firm- extra WINK-WINK).

                Either way, I think Quinn’s name will come up in a conference room or two. His experience and his connections will get some people’s attention. If he could bring the leadership and experience and have the connections to bring in an OC like Chris Foerster in SF who is currently Shanahan’s OL Coach and Run Game Coordinator or another similar candidate, like the beloved Kellen Moore whom he worked with in 2021. He could also bring in a guy like Darrell Bevel an experienced OC who he worked with in Seattle. Bevel was credited with a lot of Wilson’s development and is currently the QB Coach for and Pass Game Coordinator in Miami working with Tua- Two QBs with similar style of play to Bryce Young.

                I’m not lobbying for Quinn, but I am taking the biased Panther opinions out of my head. Whether he turns out to be a successful McCarthy style retread, the Defensive version of Frank Reich, or a transitional guy who hovers at .500 is yet to be seen. However, he will likely land a job with somebody this offseason.

[Jaxel]

Beautiful write up, but a waste of time as the likeliness of this happening for the Panthers is 0.0.

Edited December 20, 2023 by Jaxel

[4Corners]

He’s a really good DC. Maybe the best in the business but don’t think I want the guy as a HC. 

[Jay Roosevelt]

No.

[Panthering]

He's the perfect DC, but I'm just not convinced about him at HC.

[frankw]

[Jackie Lee]

No

[Carl Spackler]

Bad choice. Expect him to be on the short list.

[Carl Spackler]

He's as good as hired if Tepper likes his wife's meatballs.

[Barney]

Got his ass handed to him Sunday by none other than Joe Brady calling plays for the Bills lol.  I'll pass.  Good DC not head coach material imo.  

[TheBigKat]

The guy looks like a mattress salesman and his team choked hard in the Super Bowl

 

 

 no

[chbright]

6 hours ago, Barney said:

Got his ass handed to him Sunday by none other than Joe Brady calling plays for the Bills lol.  I'll pass.  Good DC not head coach material imo.  

bill's have looked better with Joe Brady as OC the last few weeks than Dorsey. we gave up on Joe waaaaay too early in his career cause we wanted instant gratification and results.

[rayzor]

[RumHam]

NO