Dan Quinn talks Commanders' plans vs. Micah Parsons; how rookie RT Josh Conerly Jr. can approach Packers' star

No one needs to tell Dan Quinn knows just how good Micah Parsons is. The Commanders coach spent three years as Parsons' defensive coordinator with the Cowboys, turning the former Penn State star from first-round pick to one of the NFL's best players in the blink of an eye. Then, standing on the opposite sideline last year, Quinn watched Parsons rack up 4.5 sacks in two games against his Commanders.

Washington may no longer have to face Parsons twice a year now that he's in Green Bay, but Quinn and company can't escape him entirely: The Commanders visit the Packers on Thursday night.

"I was surprised that he was traded, and I had an absolute blast coaching him," Quinn said Monday. "So, he brings out the mad scientist in you to see, 'Alright, what if he was here and how would you feature him? And what about over here?' He was a player that could learn things really quickly."

When asked about the toughest challenge of facing his former player, Quinn said "speed."

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"In Dallas he was one of our fastest players, so that's the hardest thing to simulate for an offensive tackle to see the first couple, two or three steps. It's not at a speed that you can simulate in a practice rep. So early on I think there's been some rushes that he could surprise some people if you haven't faced him, knowing that he can really jump off the ball."

Josh Conerly Jr. certainly hasn't faced Parsons. In fact, he has only played one NFL game. The first-round pick out of Oregon had an uneven debut against the Giants, giving up a sack on a speed rush by Brian Burns and allowing two hurries, one of which resulted in him getting flagged for a holding.

"It was OK," Conerly said after the game. "Lots of ups and downs but, you know, solid start, you know what I mean? It can only go up from here."

He added going against Parsons is going to be a "great challenge" for himself and the offensive line as a whole.

Quinn has been impressed by Conerly's improvement in the months since he was drafted and expects that improvement to continue as he builds experience.

"Burns is a excellent rusher and we see Von [Miller] here in practice, all those reps, they just count, man," Quinn said. "Just keep putting it into the whole thing. And then that's where the experience comes. That's also life in the NFL as a tackle, like the matchups, the people. And so you grow, you fight and you know what, he got beat some too, and that's part of growing and learning and all right, he blocked really well a lot of times too. There was some excellent protection, and then there's times you get beat."