Rivera’s response was long, quite long.
It has been a rough road for Rivera, now in his fourth season. There have not been enough wins. In fact, no winning seasons.
Ron Rivera did not hold back today.
He was asked if it has been difficult not to wonder about the future?
Rivera said, “No…f*** I’ve been through enough. The last three and a half years have not been easy. Anybody who thinks it’s been easy the hell with them.” pic.twitter.com/xdiUARacV1
— Scott Abraham (@Scott7news) November 17, 2023
At the most important position, Rivera has had players with real deficiencies and limitations of various sorts (Alex Smith, Dwayne Haskins, Kyle Allen, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Taylor Heinicke and Carson Wentz).
So, in his fourth year, Rivera decided to go with Sam Howell, a guy with a mere one game of NFL experience.
Don’t overlook the burden (physically and emotionally) of enduring chemotherapy and radiation treatments during an NFL season!
Rivera has worked under the pressure of knowing his job might be in danger.
He alluded to his going through this experience in Carolina, and indeed he did. New owner David Tepper fired Rivera during the 2019 season, ironically after a home loss to the Washington Redskins.
“S—, I’ve been through enough,” Rivera said. “The last three and a half years have not been easy. Anybody who thinks it’s been easy, to hell with them. And I’ll be honest with you because that’s how I feel about the last three years. It’s been a lot; we’ve done a lot.”
The fan base is frustrated Rivera has not won enough. I certainly understand that because I have been frustrated as well.
When Buffalo fell to 5-5 this week, head coach Sean McDermott clearly made offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey his scapegoat, firing Dorsey despite the fact the Bills are 3rd in yards gained and 3rd in yards gained per play.
Rivera was asked if he might make a change to his staff.
“No, because, I mean, in this situation and circumstances right now, to me, there’s more than just one reason [for the team’s record],” Rivera said. “And I’m not looking to throw anybody under the bus or blame anybody. I want to get through this season. I want to get through the season with as many wins as we can have. I want to get in the playoffs. We have seven games left to play and we’ll see what happens. But I’m not going anywhere in terms of changing what I’m doing or changing my approach. We started this and I think we have an opportunity to do some good things and, again, just continue with the growth.”
Sometimes in life, it takes more courage to be loyal, admitting you shouldn’t make someone else your scapegoat.
I want more wins, but I can respect Coach Rivera for his commitment to his fellow laborers.