NFL Rumors: Ron Rivera Fired by Commanders; HC Went 26-40-1 in 4 Seasons

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Adam Schefter reported Rivera’s firing is part of an organizational overhaul, with former Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers and former Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman coming on to help guide the process of hiring a new coach and head of football operations.

Rivera just finished his fourth season with the Commanders. He was hired by the team on Jan. 1, 2020, four weeks after the Carolina Panthers fired him following a 5-7 start to the 2019 season.

Despite missing the playoffs in each of his first two seasons on the job, Washington was in contention through Week 17 in 2022. The team looked to be in great shape with a 7-5-1 record after a tie against the New York Giants on Dec. 4, but three consecutive losses coming out of the Week 14 bye ended its postseason hopes.

Washington was looking to Rivera for stability following Jay Gruden’s tenure from 2014 to 19. Gruden was fired after a 0-5 start in 2019, dropping his overall record with the team to 35-49-1.

Even though the Commanders’ record wasn’t great, Rivera’s first season was a success. They won the NFC East, despite being 7-9, for the first time since 2015. They played well in the NFC Wild Card Round before eventually falling 31-23 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

They finished third in the NFC East with a 7-10 record in 2021. The defense, which ranked fourth in points allowed during the 2020 campaign, dropped down to 25th.

One common issue for Rivera throughout his time in Washington was an unstable quarterback situation. Alex Smith, Dwayne Haskins, Kyle Allen, Taylor Heinicke, Garrett Gilbert, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Carson Wentz, and Sam Howell all started games for the team.

Wentz was acquired from the Indianapolis Colts in March to provide some semblance of stability. He had some decent performances but remained wildly inconsistent with 1,755 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, and nine interceptions in seven starts.

After an ugly 12-7 win over the Chicago Bears in Week 6 last season, Rivera passionately defended the move to acquire Wentz as one he championed after ESPN’s Seth Wickersham, Don Van Natta Jr., and Tisha Thompson reported team owner Dan Snyder was the one who pushed to add the veteran quarterback.

“Everybody keeps saying I didn’t want anything to do with Carson, well, bulls–t,” Rivera told reporters on Oct. 13. “I’m the f–king guy that pulled out the sheets of paper, looked at the analytics, watched the tape when we were at Indianapolis, OK? And that’s what pisses me off, ’cause the young man doesn’t deserve to have that all the time.”

The addition of Wentz didn’t do much to improve Washington’s fortunes on the field. He was benched in favor of Taylor Heinicke for a brief period during the season. The Commanders went 5-3-1 in nine starts with Heinicke, but he was benched in the fourth quarter of a 37-20 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 16.

Wentz’s start against the Cleveland Browns in Week 17 was a mess. He finished 16 of 28 for 143 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions in a 24-10 loss.

Amid all the instability at quarterback, the Commanders continue to have an impressive collection of skill-position players. Terry McLaurin surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the third consecutive year. Jahan Dotson finished his rookie year with a team-high seven touchdown catches and averaged a strong 14.9 yards per reception. Curtis Samuel averaged 8.3 yards per touch.

Under Rivera, second-year quarterback Sam Howell threw for 3,946 yards, 21 touchdowns, and an NFL-high 21 interceptions this season.

Meanwhile, the defense allowed the most points (30.5 points per game) and the most yards (388.9 yards per game). This was a top-10 unit in both categories in 2022.

Following a 45-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving, the Commanders made changes on that side of the ball. Defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio and defensive backs coach Brent Vieselmeyer, who had been on Rivera’s staff since January 2020, were both fired on Nov. 24.

Some of the defensive struggles with the new ownership group appear to have been by design. Both Chase Young and Montez Sweat were traded away during the season for draft assets, in part because the Harris group wanted to focus entirely on the long-term future of the franchise.

Even though Rivera’s performance has been okay at times, his future with the organization became uncertain in July 2023 when NFL owners unanimously voted to approve Snyder’s sale of the Commanders to a group led by Josh Harris.

New owners typically want to hire people that they choose rather than hang on to remnants from the previous owner, especially given how volatile things with Snyder often were.

Rivera finished his time with the Commanders with a 26-40-1 record and no winning seasons.