Category: Latest Washington News

Top quotes from Ron Rivera following first padded practice in Washington

Rivera made note of several things that he liked or didn’t like in the first padded practice that he was a part of in Washington.

It’s easy to say that Ron Rivera is officially the head coach in Washington now. This has been true all offseason, of course, but now that he’s run his first padded practice with the team, it just feels like the process is complete.

While we all loved to see updates and watch videos from the first practice that media was allowed to attend, Rivera sat down with media members after the day and stressed improvement at several areas, as well as making note of some things that he liked to see. Here are all of the best quotes from his talk with media.

[vertical-gallery id=39291]

Ron Rivera lays down the law after practice in Washington, stressing improvement

With a full day of padded practice in the books, Rivera used this opportunity to stress discipline and improvement going forward.

It wouldn’t be the start of football season without the head coach yelling at the players to stop standing around, would it? That’s exactly what happened on Tuesday morning in Washington, according to NBC Sports Washington’s JP Finlay, as practice came to a close.

“Practice is ending and Ron Rivera is dressing down his team for standing around confused during portions of drills,” Finlay wrote on Twitter. “Delivered a loud ‘get in your book and study.'”

Before you think too much about the fact that Washington players needed to get yelled at for being lazy on the very first day of padded practice, know that this is probably more of a coach asserting his dominance rather than laziness on the field. With his first real practice in Washington, Rivera is making sure that he can set the culture that he wants strongly in practice, so it grows into discipline when games come around.

With one padded practice down, we all can feel the joy of watching videos and seeing pictures from the first full day. Football seems to be back, finally, in Washington, and hopefully, it’s here to stay.

[vertical-gallery id=39271]

WATCH: Chase Young quickly shows off power in full-padded practice

In Chase Young’s first padded NFL practice, a video captures him tossing aside an offensive lineman in position drills with ease.

We’ve all been waiting to see what Washington rookie DE Chase Young could do once he got into full pads, and it didn’t take long for him to prove himself, or the grown-man strength that he has.

Early on Tuesday morning, with the defensive line going against offensive linemen in position drills, a video captured Young tossing aside the opposing lineman, clearing a way to the metaphorical quarterback. It seemed to be no issue for Young, who is going through his first padded NFL practice.

If this is any indication of what we may see going forward, Young will have an incredibly entertaining career in Washington.

[vertical-gallery id=39210]

Alex Smith is ready to help push Dwayne Haskins to potential greatness

Smith will eventually be ready to compete for QB1 job in Washington, but he knows that his biggest asset is being able to mentor Haskins.

The news that Alex Smith is returning to the football field in Washington is one of the brighter subjects that’s happened for the franchise this offseason, but many have wondered what his potential return could mean for the team going forward. Mainly, what does it mean for Dwayne Haskins?

While those questions may be warranted, Smith did what he could to denounce them on Monday when talking to Washington’s Senior VP of Media and Content, Julie Donaldson.

“I think to twist that he and I, our career paths are somehow against each other, I think is definitely not the truth,” Smith said. “He has his path out in front of him to try and reach his potential, and he has a ton of it. He knows that. It’s about him, going out there every single day, and getting better.”

Knowing that Smith is willing to take on a mentorship role in Washington could be the biggest benefit to Haskins as well. So far his his career, Smith has helped groom both Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Mahomes while in San Francisco and Kansas City. Now, with Haskins at his side in Washington, there’s no reason why the young QB might benefit from that same help from Smith.

“For me, it’s helping in whatever way I can,” Smith said. “If it’s me sitting back there and putting my coaching hat on, so to speak, when he’s taking his reps, it’s like that. But when I get my reps, maybe it’s showing him a different style of how to do that.

“I learned a lot from quarterbacks I’ve played with, and it wasn’t necessarily what they told me,” Smith continued. “It’s watching them play where I learned the most. Watching them how they do things, how they manage their game. And sometimes, I feel like that can be the best teacher.”

Smith may not be physically ready to compete for the starting job in Washington just yet, but when he is, that will undoubtedly benefit Haskins as well. Ron Rivera has stated multiple times this offseason that he desires to bring as much competition to practice as possible this season, hoping that players would drive each other to be better. When the time comes for that, Smith will definitely be ready to push the group forward. Until then, though, he will fit whatever role is needed.

[vertical-gallery id=39271]

 

Washington president Jason Wright is huge fan of passion behind ‘Redwolves’ movement

Jason Wright made note of the passionate support of Redwolves name in Washington, which he hoped to harness going forward.

With the breaking news on Monday morning that the Washington Football Team had hired Jason Wright to be the newest team president, making him both the first Black president in NFL history, and the young current president in the league (38), Washington Twitter circles were abuzz all day celebrating the news.

What is most exciting about the new hire is learning that Wright, who played in the NFL for several years, will be at the forefront of the coming name-change in Washington, which should take place somewhere over the next year or two. As it is such a hot topic among fans in D.C., Wright was not shy about discussing what the process would be like for changing the name going forward, and he made sure to note that one name in particular — the Redwolves — seems to have an incredibly passionate group of fans pushing for that to be the choice.

“I think within 30 seconds of being announced, someone tweeted and blew up my Twitter with Redwolves propaganda,” Wright said with a laugh on the Washington Football Talk Podcast. “This is a very aggressive campaign around Redwolves, which is wonderful! The passion is fantastic, and that’s what’s kept this franchise afloat, frankly. You have fans that are so engaged on this, and we are absolutely going to harness that. That’s what’s going to carry the momentum forward on this culture change.”

There are a number of candidates for the new name, of which the Redwolves is only one that many fans seem to be debating between. Regardless of where the team decides to go, they’ve made it clear that fan and sponsor input will be incredibly important going forward as they try to find the right answer and help cement the culture change that is currently taking place.

“I love it, I love it,” Wright said. “Wherever we may land might piss some folks off, I have no idea. But my guess is that if we do it right, everybody will understand how the process went. They will have seen their input go into some aspect of the new identity, whether that’s the name, or the uniform, or the way we’re choosing to approach the community going forward. Hopefully, every fan will be able to see themselves in it, and therefore we walk out of this in just such a tight-knit new way.”

If you aren’t convinced that Wright is the right person for the job in Washington by his comments on Monday, I’m unsure of what more to tell you. Something is taking root in Washington, and Wright will undoubtedly be a major part of it going forward.

[vertical-gallery id=39291]

Dwayne Haskins has no room for excuses in his second season in NFL

There were a number of reasons why Haskins had an underwhelming rookie year, but going forward he is in control of how good he can be.

[jwplayer UFtwXGNG]

Going into his second season in the NFL, all eyes are going to be on QB Dwayne Haskins in Washington, as he tries to put a disappointing rookie year in his rearview mirror. There have been endless stories coming out of Washington camps this offseason that have shown Haskins putting in a ton of work, and making sure to get better each and every day.

While there are obviously other factors around Haskins that will go a long way in determining his success — offensive weapons, blocking up front, etc. — in the end the biggest determining factor will be under his control. The new offensive coordinator in Washington, Scott Turner, said on Monday that the young QB will be the writer of his own story.

“He can be as good as he wants to be,” Turner said, via NBC Sports Washington.

It was easy to make excuses in 2019 for why Haskins struggled. He came into a system that was ill-fit for a young QB with minimal weapons around him, and the coaching staff was seemingly upfront about not wanting him in the first place. Still, Haskins did himself no favors early on my struggling on the field, and failing to show the necessary maturity even when success did come, missing the final snaps in his first victory because he was taking a selfie with fans in the stands.

Despite all of the turmoil in 2019, there were still a lot of plays that allude to a bright future. The final stretch run of Haskins’ rookie season definitely gave the team hope going forward, and it seems that the pieces are there to make a solid player.

“You can pick out plays from last season that really make you say, ‘wow.’ It’s just a matter of playing consistently, making the right decision over and over and over,” Turner said. “That’s what playing quarterback in this league is about. Dwayne definitely has the ability to do that. He just has to continue to learn and get better. He can’t be afraid to make mistakes and learn from them moving forward.”

[vertical-gallery id=39271]

Jason Wright says name change is about identity; ‘Bigger than a logo’

One of the biggest projects for Wright to take on as president is deciding a new team name in Washington, which he said will be a process.

While the celebrations and congratulations are prevalent in Washington today with the announcement that Jason Wright has been hired as the first Black team president in NFL history, pretty soon the 38-year-old will have to get down to business and focus on the changes that he’s been hired to oversee in a franchise that has suffered some bumps and bruises over the past several months, and years.

One of the biggest things that Wright will be focusing on over the next several months is helping to decide on a new team name in Washington, something that is long overdue and much-needed to help the culture shift in D.C. When talking on Good Morning America on Monday, Wright explained that he’s aware of the weight that this decision holds, and it’s something that will take some time.

“What we’re actually doing is much more than a new name. It’s actually a new identity, a new way of engaging with the world,” Wright said. “It’s going to inform the new way we embed in the community, the way we engage with fans. So it’s much bigger than just a name or a logo or whatever you’re going to put on the jersey.”

Jerseys and logos aside, there is a clear desire in Washington to keep some of the old traditions alive that were prevalent decades ago when the storied franchise was among the best in the NFL. In order to get this decision right, and find a way to please fans, and players, and sponsors, it’s going to take quite a while to come to a decision.

“It’s going to be a longer process, and it’s going to engage the fans intensely, it’s going to engage the sponsors intensely, and by the end of this, it’s going to be a community decision that we make as a Washington Football community.”

It’s clear that the desire to have everyone come together and decide on a new and hopefully bright future is incredibly important. Wright made sure to note that on Monday, and the name change process will be in good hands with him going forward.

[vertical-gallery id=39210]

Players and media take to Twitter to congratulate Washington president Jason Wright

Washington’s hire of Jason Wright as the new president seems to have struck the right chord, with everyone sending their congratulations.

Washington kicked off the week with a bang by announcing the hiring of Jason Wright as their newest team president, making him the youngest team president in the NFL at age 38.

Wright is also the first Black team president in the NFL, and just the fourth former player to ascend to that role.

While we may not know a ton about Wright and his playing career, it is clear by the reaction from his colleagues and those who know him that Washington is hiring a great person who will help spur some much-needed change in Washington. Here are the best reactions and congratulations from Twitter after the announcement was made.

[vertical-gallery id=39291]

What should you know about Washington’s new president, Jason Wright?

Washington hired former NFL running back Jason Wright to be the new team president, who is the youngest to hold that position at age 38.

The Washington Football Team made history on Monday morning when they announced that Jason Wright was being hired as the new team president. Wright is a former player in the NFL, and he now becomes the first Black team president in league history, as well as the fourth player to ascend to that role.

So what should you know about Wright going forward? Here are some quick hitters.

  • From 2004-2010, Wright was a running back in the NFL, playing for the Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns, and Atlanta Falcons.
  • Finished his college career at Northwestern as the fourth all-time leading rusher with 2,625 yards, the third all-time all-purpose yards leader with 4,030 yards, and the fourth all-time leading scorer with 210 points.
  • At just 38 years old, Wright becomes the youngest team president in the NFL.
  • In his six years in the league, he only ran for 633 total yards and had two touchdowns, though he was often a favorite among teammates in the locker room.
  • In college at Northwestern, he was a double-major in psychology and pre-medicine.

As time goes on, we will continue to learn more about Wright, but the reaction from the hiring has been nothing but positive so far. Welcome to the team, Jason!

[vertical-gallery id=39291]

Washington hires Jason Wright as NFL’s first Black team president

Washington announced the hiring of Jason Wright as the new team president on Monday, making him the fourth former player to ascend to role.

The Washington Football Team continues to be on the forefront of change this offseason, as they have now hired Jason Wright to be the new team president, starting next week.

Wright, who was a former running back in the NFL, is now the first African-American team president in the NFL, and only the fourth former player to ascend to that role.

“This team, at this time, is an ideal opportunity for me,” Wright said in a statement. “The transformation of the Washington Football Team is happening across all aspects of the organization — from football to operations to branding to culture — and will make us a truly modern and aspirational franchise. We want to set new standards for the NFL.”

Washington has been without a president since Bruce Allen was fired at the end of the 2019 season, and head coach Ron Rivera was hired soon after to take over in a strong leadership role for the team, according to Dan Snyder. This new hiring is not supposed to change much of that at all, with Rivera still holding full control of what takes place on the field.

“If I could custom design a leader for this important time in our history, it would be Jason,” Snyder said in a statement. “His experience as a former player, coupled with his business acumen, gives him a perspective that is unrivaled in the league. We will not rest until we are a championship caliber team, on and off the field.”

[vertical-gallery id=39271]