Former Dallas players, coaches now with Commanders add extra layer to rivalry

Familiar faces are coming to Northwest Stadium on Sunday as the Washington Commanders host the Dallas Cowboys in the historic rivalry’s first matchup of the season.

Still, several Washington players and coaches insist familiarity has not bred contempt.

The Commanders revamped their roster over the offseason, and first-year coach Dan Quinn borrowed liberally from the Dallas squad that he helped coach the past three seasons.

After Quinn took over in February, Washington signed five former Cowboys in center Tyler Biadasz, pass rushers Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler, wide receiver Noah Brown and cornerback Noah Igbinoghene.

Sunday will be their first opportunity to face their old team.

“It’s one of the biggest games for me,” Armstrong said. “Every game is a big game, but when you play the team you came from, you just have more urgency.”

The addition of the former Cowboys was an intentional move by Quinn and general manager Adam Peters to add familiar talent from a division rival to boost a Commanders squad that had plenty of holes to address. It didn’t hurt that the new signings already spoke Quinn’s language.

“I saw firsthand how they could affect the game,” Quinn said. “I knew having some people along those lines to maybe look around the corners as I was just getting started. ‘What Dan’s trying to say here might be X, Y or Z.’” 

While several of the former Cowboys eagerly await the opportunity to square off against their old teammates, Quinn says he’s too far into his career to buy into those storylines.

“Maybe early on into your coaching career you do,” he said this week. “More than anything, you see your friends that you coached with or worked with postgame, and you see some of the players in the same space beforehand.”

Quinn’s 7-4 Commanders enter the game on a two-game losing streak, but the Cowboys offer a prime opportunity to rebound. After losing to the Philadelphia Eagles last Thursday, Washington will have had 10 days to prepare for a 3-7 Dallas squad that’s lost five straight and will rely on backup quarterback Cooper Rush.

“It’s not good,” Armstrong said, with a smile when asked about his former team’s disappointing season. “I’ll leave it at that.”

This might be just another game for Quinn, but his players had trouble sharing the same sentiment when speaking with reporters this week. It’s a unique opportunity for Armstrong and the former Cowboys now wearing burgundy and gold.

“It’s gonna be really cool to play against them — a lot of my old friends, old teammates. Being able to catch up with them, compete on the field,” said Fowler, who ranks fourth in the NFL in sacks this season with 8.5. “I couldn’t really touch the quarterback when I was there, so it’ll be cool to get him a couple times.”

That sentiment goes both ways, though.

“I’m happy they got a great opportunity,” Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said of his former players. “And I hope they play like s—- on Sunday.”

While the ex-Cowboys insist on no hard feelings with their old team, they noted their familiarity has brought some advantages.

Biadasz spent four seasons in the middle of Dallas’ offensive line and is giving his new teammates tips about its tendencies.

“He played there for a really long time. I don’t think too much has changed,” defensive tackle Daron Payne said. “They still talk the same way, still do all the protections and stuff the same.”

The storied Dallas-Washington rivalry means a lot to their fans, but younger players can’t remember the glory days when it was Cowboys versus Redskins and they were Super Bowl contenders. The intense matchups have cooled off in recent years, primarily because Washington has struggled to field competitive rosters. The Cowboys have won five of their past six games against the Commanders.

“It was just the next game,” Armstrong said. “They did try to make it seem like it was still a rivalry and stuff like that, but no, not really.”

Washington’s media department is giving the players a crash course in the history of the rivalry this week as the Commanders look to regain their winning ways. With dynamic rookie Jayden Daniels under center, the Commanders hope to enter a new era in the 64-year-old rivalry: an era with more celebrations for fans wearing burgundy and gold.

“Maybe Sunday I’ll go out there and really feel what this rivalry means,” the quarterback said, noting that he’s still learning about the franchises’ shared history. “But obviously to the fans, it’s going to mean a lot to go out there and try to get a win.”