Will Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera finally move on from long snapper Camaron Cheeseman?
Since training camp, Rivera has flirted with disaster, keeping the struggling snapper. Throughout the season, Cheeseman had errant snaps, but punter/holder Tress Way often saved him.
On Sunday, Cheeseman had at least three bad snaps, two of which cost Washington points. One of those, a bad snap on a punt, almost seriously injured Way. Fortunately, Way was fine and returned to the game, but it gave the Rams excellent field position.
Cheeseman spoke to reporters after the game and was asked if he was worried about his job.
“I mean, I’ve been worried all year,” Cheeseman said, per Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post. “I haven’t been performing the way I’ve been wanting to. Most places, I probably wouldn’t be around still.”
That’s a very telling statement, especially the final sentence.
What did Rivera say about Cheeseman’s status?
“That’s not good enough, and we’re going to evaluate that,” Rivera said when asked about Cheeseman’s snaps.
Rivera moved up in the 2021 NFL draft to select Cheeseman in the sixth round. He has refused to even entertain moving on from Cheeseman. While he did bring in some long snappers for workouts in September, Rivera didn’t seem to think Cheeseman’s issues were an actual concern.
After Sunday, it would be hard to justify bringing Cheeseman back for another week, something even the player would understand.