John KeimJan 9, 2026, 07:13 PM ET
- John Keim covers the Washington Commanders for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2013 after a stint with the Washington Post. He started covering the team in 1994 for the Journal Newspapers and later for the Washington Examiner. He has authored/co-authored four books. You can also listen to him on 'The John Keim Report', which airs on ESPN Richmond radio.
The Washington Commanders made their second surprising move of the week, promoting David Blough to offensive coordinator after only two years as an assistant quarterbacks coach, a source told ESPN.
Blough's promotion comes after Washington mutually agreed to part ways with offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury on Tuesday, a move owed to each side having a different future vision for the offense, according to multiple team sources and others with knowledge of the situation.
Blough took over the quarterback coach duties after Tavita Pritchard, who held that role, was hired as Stanford's head coach on Nov. 28.
A former quarterback, Blough played five seasons in the NFL with four different organizations. He appeared in nine games, making seven starts.
The Detroit Lions also showed interest in Blough for its offensive coordinator position; the Commanders did not want to lose someone they considered a talented coach, even if he's only 29 years old.
When Dan Quinn coached the Atlanta Falcons, he allowed coaches such as Mike McDaniel and Matt LaFleur to leave when Kyle Shanahan became the head coach in San Francisco.
Chicago, Detroit and the New York Jets all showed interest in Blough last offseason.
As a player, Blough spent time with Detroit from 2019-21 and was on the Lions' practice squad in 2023. A year later he joined Washington's staff under Kingsbury, whom he played for in 2022 for a month before being cut the next season.
Kingsbury often raved about Blough's football acumen. He pointed to his experience in multiple systems, including under Ben Johnson in Detroit and Kevin O'Connell in Minnesota.
"He's very bright, there's no doubt," Kingsbury said last month. "He's been around some great offensive minds ... so his biggest strengths are he sees it from the lens of the player and yet he can kind of separate and still be the coach."
Blough developed a strong relationship with Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels -- the two would play a football version of H-O-R-S-E before practice each Friday.
But, Kingsbury said, Blough was demanding of the players. Kingsbury said that likely stemmed because Blough "maximized who he was as a player."
"He knew he had to get every ounce out of every throw and rep," Kingsbury said. "You feel that in his coaching ... he's not going to let him off the hook if it's a lazy rep -- 'Hey, do it again. We need a better one than that.' And I think that's really been good for that room, just watching him work with those guys -- they definitely appreciate and respect kind of his honesty and that he's been through it on that level."
