Washington Commanders coach Dan Quinn paused briefly to gather his thoughts when asked whether he would like to play abroad every year.
“Good question,” he said, with another pause, before jokingly asking if anyone from the NFL was there.
“No, just kidding…” he quickly added, before going on to answer the question.
“We knew it hurts a little bit in the beginning of the week, but then as you get closer to game day, man, you’re ready to perform,” Quinn said. “So I think if you could do it, yeah, I think there’s a way depending on where you go, I guess.”
The Commanders will face the Miami Dolphins at Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on Sunday in the seventh — and final — international game of the season, the most in one year for the NFL as it continues to expand globally.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has said he would like to see each team playing one international game every year.
Quinn said he likes that now there’s a lot of thought and preparation involved in the international games, with the teams, the league and local organizers making sure everything runs smoothly.
He said the bonding opportunity for his squad was a big plus, especially with his team struggling at 3-7 and looking to snap a five-game losing streak.
“I personally like getting the team together,” he said. “I don’t know if there’s a science behind that, but I know what that energy can look like when you connect.”
He said good planning for the trip was important to allow players to adapt quickly.
“You have to be thoughtful about it, about when you go and when you don’t,” Quinn said. “But so far I liked this feeling and the idea of leaving on the Monday night. Tuesday, you arrive here in the morning, tried to keep the players up, had a workout, could do some things, so then go to bed Tuesday night to get into a normal routine.”
And the bad side of it?
Quinn said the “toughest thing” is probably adapting to a new environment where the players come to practice.
“When you’re on a normal road trip, you practice at your own facility and then pack up and go play. When you do an extended trip, now there’s ‘Where do I go for treatment? Where do I go for the recovery work, the locker room?’” he said. “So, finding those spaces and getting into that vibe, it takes a few days. But if you have a few days of that, then you can find the routine. As any ball player would say, routine is very important.”
This is Washington’s first international game since 2016, when it tied the Cincinnati Bengals at Wembley Stadium in London. The Dolphins are playing in their eighth regular-season game abroad, second only to the 14 played by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
More than 60 regular-season games will have been played abroad through this season, with London, Munich, Frankfurt, São Paulo, Mexico City, Madrid, Berlin, Dublin and Toronto hosting them. Next year, the NFL will go to Australia, which could pose a bigger problem for teams because of the bigger time difference.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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