Returning Commanders aim to impress Dan Quinn and his coaching staff

The Commanders’ third-year defensive tackle had to be at the team’s facility for the start of training camp, the team’s first under new coach Dan Quinn. Check-in started at 11 a.m. Tuesday, and the first team meeting began at 1 p.m.

Mathis wasn’t willing to risk anything, so after finally getting on a flight to Atlanta and then another to Roanoke, he hopped in a car and drove the remaining 225 miles to Ashburn, arriving around 3 a.m.

“I just had to get here on time,” he said. “I didn’t want to be late on the first day.”

Mathis may have been groggy, but his circuitous journey spoke volumes to Quinn.

“That shows where he’s at in terms of how badly he wants to make his mark and to make an impression,” the coach said. “He would’ve been here on time — probably would’ve gotten here at 11:30 that morning. He wasn’t having it. He wasn’t leaving anything to chance.”

Mathis and other returning players who experienced the ups and downs of the past couple of seasons in Washington are starting anew with Quinn and his staff. Many have lauded the “energy” around the team and the competition on the field.

But the clean slate also means some of the 43 players who spent at least part of last season with the Commanders have to prove themselves all over again to earn their spots and a future in the new scheme.

“I feel like everything’s on the line right now, especially for me basically missing two years,” Mathis said. “So I got to take care of my body, try to be healthy and stay on the field, because I just want to contribute.”

Mathis, a second-round pick out of Alabama in 2022, lost his entire rookie season to a knee injury, then missed more time last season because of a calf injury. He played 10 games in 2023 but averaged only 19 defensive snaps and recorded eight tackles.

The road back was physically and mentally trying, he said, noting how he gets emotional even thinking about the past two seasons. But he expects this year to be different, in part because of his offseason, which he described as his best as a professional. Mathis worked with veteran defensive linemen around the league, including Green Bay Packers defensive end Rashan Gary. The two trained together at Sports Academy at the Star in Frisco, Tex., giving Mathis a chance to draw from Gary’s regimen and pick his brain about his approach to the position.

Mathis’s goal for 2024 is simple.

“I’m going to dedicate this year just to proving all the haters wrong and why they really brought me here in the first place,” he said.

Fellow Commanders defensive tackle John Ridgeway, who played for Quinn briefly in Dallas before Washington signed him in 2022, feels similarly and found his own way to stand out: by slimming down.

Ridgeway dropped nearly 20 pounds since offseason practices to improve his conditioning and find more ways to get on the field.

“I’m a big fan of Italian food, so I try not to eat that as much,” he said. “And when I did eat, I just made sure I had a big plate of chicken or red meat and a little bit of carbs or vegetables. It’s kind of like a carnivore diet a little bit. I still try to enjoy stuff. But I tried to eat clean and get on the treadmill.”

No more McDonald’s. No more Five Guys. What he gets instead is about 45 minutes of walking at a 3.5-mph clip on a level 10 incline to burn close to 500 calories per workout.

“Action Bronson does that stuff,” Ridgeway said of the rapper, chef and TV personality. “He was a big dude and lost a bunch of weight, so I said, ‘Let me try it.’”

Ridgeway’s methods worked; he was down to around 318 pounds at the start of training camp after starting organized team activities at 338.

Although it took him some time to get his footing with his new size, Ridgeway said he notices a difference on the field, which he hopes will lead to more playing time on third downs and consideration for a bigger contract when his rookie deal expires in 2026.

“Those guys are thirsty,” Commanders defensive line coach Darryl Tapp said. “I couldn’t be happier with Phil and with Ridgeway and even with Daron [Payne] and Jon [Allen]. Being older guys, they’ve done a lot of things in this league. They have a beginner’s mindset too. They’re not too big for the moment we’re in right now.”

The players, he said, have accepted Washington’s new philosophy and want to be taught.

Tapp’s teachings can be seen and heard. In individual pass-rushing drills during the early portion of Thursday’s practice, Tapp instructed Ridgeway on his hand placement, and assistant defensive line coach Sharrif Floyd adjusted Ridgeway’s feet in his four-point stance.

Ridgeway has length and power, Tapp said, but some finesse could make him even more effective. The slight tweaks to Ridgeway’s hands and feet created a significant difference from rep to rep as he pushed back a teammate, who was standing in as an offensive lineman, with seeming ease.

Those smaller details could be critical for Ridgeway, who became a key piece of Washington’s defensive line rotation last season but starts anew with Quinn this season — while also chasing his first career sack.

Mathis knows the feeling.

“I just really feel like this is what a lot of guys needed, especially myself,” he said. “Just a new coaching staff that really just pushes us, man. I think they bring it all out of us. They make it exciting to be here every day. You can tell there’s a new standard around here.”