Dan Quinn was public enemy No. 1 when he left the Dallas Cowboys, but you have to admire the job he's done with the Washington Commanders. While the Commanders' turnaround can most be attributed to change in ownership, Quinn has spearheaded the reversal of a once-shattered culture.
It obviously helps that Washington struck gold with No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels. As a rookie, Daniels is top 10 in completion percentage and passer rating, and has 13 total touchdowns (nine passing, four rushing) to just two interceptions.
But again, it all starts at the head of the snake. Quinn's Commanders are this year's feel-good story and multiple former Cowboys are playing a prominent role.
The perennially underrated Dorance Armstrong is having a rock-solid season and center Tyler Biadasz has brought stability to the interior offensive line. However, one former Cowboy is in the midst of a career year under Quinn and nobody in Dallas gave a second thought to re-signing him.
Cowboys 2024 free agent Dante Fowler is dominating under Dan Quinn
Trey Hendrickson remains atop the sack charts after Week 10 pic.twitter.com/iPFExJ6VFj
— NFL (@NFL) November 13, 2024
Remember Dante Fowler? A quality depth pass rusher for the Cowboys in 2022 and 2023, Fowler is having a renaissance season in 2024.
The former No. 3 overall pick racked up two sacks in the Commanders' loss to the Steelers last Sunday and made some history in the process, becoming the first Washington defender to post consecutive games with multiple sacks since Ryan Kerrigan in 2017. Kerrigan is a strong bet to enter the team's Ring of Fame, so that is impressive company for Fowler.
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Pro Football Focus credits Fowler with nine sacks on the season. His career-high for sacks in a season is 13.0, which he set in 2019 as a member of the Los Angeles Rams. The Commanders have eight games left - they play the Eagles on Thursday Night Football for the NFC East lead - so it stands to reason that Fowler will have a new career high by season's end.
Care to guess who Washington plays next week? That would be the Cowboys, so Fowler could reach the milestone against his former team. Cooper Rush was only sacked once against the Eagles, but Dallas' pass protection has been inconsistent all season.
In all seriousness, you have to feel good for Fowler. Thrust into a prominent role in Washington, Fowler has exceeded expectations. He accumulated 10 sacks for the Cowboys in two seasons, but he never played more than 343 snaps. He's already at 305 for the Burgundy and Gold.
Fowler was never going to play above Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, so the odds of re-signing him were slim to none, but his renaissance campaign is a timely reminder that Dallas did the bare minimum in the offseason to replace him and Armstrong as key depth pieces along the defensive line.
That an afterthought free agent in Fowler is making a push for the distinguished sack crown adds more shame to an absolutely diabolic Cowboys season.