Commanders news: Adam Peters, Dan Quinn, Eric Bieniemy and Magic Johnson

Magic Johnson's masterstroke

It looked for a long time as if Kliff Kingsbury was heading to the Las Vegas Raiders to be their next offensive coordinator. After a late change of heart, he opted to join the Washington Commanders. Something that sent the rumor mill ablaze about those in power putting the pieces in place for a tilt at Caleb Williams.

Many wondered why Kingsbury did a swift U-turn in favor of working under Dan Quinn. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Magic Johnson getting involved and laying out the project was enough for a change of course.

"When you a defensive coach like Dan Quinn, the No. 1 question is ‘Who is going to be your offensive coordinator?' This is as big as it gets for the Washington Commanders. To look at the flip that happened when he was with the Raiders, my understanding is Magic Johnson, who is a limited partner with the Commanders, was actually the one to step in and kind of pull Kliff Kingsbury back and go, ‘You know what if this deal with the Raiders isn’t perfect, maybe there’s a home for you in Washington.'"

- Ian Rapoport via USA Today Sports

Johnson's been in the shadows throughout the hiring process, but his influence is being felt. He sold Kingsbury on the plans for progress. Whether this is something that continues throughout the team's upcoming free agency period remains to be seen, but it's a nice trump card to have to convince those on the fence.