Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Quinn gushes after first day of rookie minicamp

Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Quinn is like a kid in a candy store. Or is he like Dave in a liquor store? I can never remember, and I’ll admit, I suck at similes. But the bottom line is this: Quinn is in the zone right now. And no, I’m not referencing Quinn’s beloved cover 3 zone, or the zone blocking that made Devonta Freeman a rich man. I’m talking about rookie mini camp. Quinn likes rookie mini camp, and he doesn’t care who knows!

The Mothership’s Matthew Tabeek wrote up a summary of the first day of rookie mini camp. Quinn was borderline ecstatic.

“I really enjoy the role of teacher,” Quinn said. “It’s one of the things I enjoy most about coaching so, at this space, not only are we teaching them the scheme part off the field, but trying to provide some of our knowledge where we are as a group, where we are as a team, you know, some rules, how they fit it in [...”]

I want to say something here about Quinn doing things the right way. I want to point out his willingness to teach, and that he doesn’t expect to draft or sign finished products. And ultimately I want to frame that tendency as a unique characteristic, something that distinguishes Quinn from the norm. That’s what I want to do, and to be frank, it’s the sort of ho-hum, blind optimism that keeps us afloat until training camp. We inundate you with that kind of stuff and I don’t want to bore you. But gosh darnit, it’s the truth!