Tag: Commanders Head Coach Ron Rivera

More silliness regarding Ron Rivera’s comments on Eric Bieniemy

Thank goodness we have a football game on to focus on — preseason or not.

Ron Rivera’s comments regarding Eric Bieniemy have been discussed nationally in the last few days.

Theories are being suggested, some bizarre, some reasonable, most unfounded.

Jason Whitlock joined in, suggesting that “Bieniemy was hired to replace Rivera” and that “Rivera is letting the media and ownership know that Bieniemy’s style won’t work in the ultimate leadership position.”

Rivera, of course, has the top position when it comes to the football side of the organization. There is not a general manager or team president who outranks Rivera when it comes to the football team.

Going further, when Daniel Snyder cleared out his office last December, he never returned to a game nor to any business of the Commanders. He was done, moving out.

Consequently, if not Rivera, who was it that hired Bieniemy to replace Rivera? The Josh Harris ownership group did not even become official until July 20, months after the hiring of Bieniemy.

Perhaps might this be a case of Whitlock (and others) not realizing the coach-centric structure in place for the Washington Commanders, which gives all football-related decisions to Rivera for his oversight and final call.

Wednesday, Rivera went out of his way to read a prepared statement, owning his clumsy remarks. Some have strongly suggested the statement was written for Rivera, and he was forced to read it. But doesn’t that necessitate Rivera wasn’t truly owning it?

For instance, to those suggesting Rivera had to read the statement. Who was it then that prepared the statement? And whom was it ordering Rivera to read it?

One thing that remains true is that it is so much easier to form one’s theories and make one’s accusations than it is to provide proof/evidence of one’s theories. That has been and will always remain true in the human race.

It’s been a wild week; how about, until we actually know more, let’s talk some Washington Commanders football for the next few days, shall we?

Analytics pioneer Warren Sharp heavily criticizes Commanders’ Rivera

Would analytics have helped the Commanders win more games in 2022?

Warren Sharp confidently supplied listeners with several analytics markers/statistics Wednesday when he was a guest on the “Al Galdi Podcast.”

In his opening comments, Sharp expressed that last season (2022) could have been much better for Washington had they utilized some emphasis on analytics.

Sharp has graded out the Commanders offense quite lowly amongst the 32 NFL teams. On the other hand, Sharp graded the Commanders defense much higher.

However, Sharp rated Ron Rivera as 28th out of 32 NFL head coaches.

Here are some selected quotes from Sharp directed at Ron Rivera.

“To me, the whole tenure of Ron Rivera has gone massively sideways.”

“Ron Rivera is a defensive-minded head coach. The concern, in general, is a defensive coach wants his defense to look good because that is why he was brought to town. He will sacrifice some things offensively to help the defense look a little bit better potentially. What they tend to sacrifice is quarterbacks passing the ball and trying to score quickly.”

“In lieu of this, they try to control the football, run the football, have time of possession because they feel it drives the defense to give them their rest to play better. It is such an old-school process.”

“Look, last year Washington executed it to a T. They had the most time of possession of any football team since 2019. They controlled the ball over 33:00 minutes a game. But the offense averaged .57 points per minute. (Ranked 31 in NFL).”

“You guys ranked 32 in pass rate in the first half of games. You were running the ball a ton and these runs were abysmal. Early-down runs in the first half you guys were last in the NFL.”

“He (Rivera) hasn’t delivered a single winning season in three years. He still hasn’t figured out the quarterback position.”

There was much more from Sharp being critical of Washington’s 2022 offense in general and Ron Rivera in particular. See the above link to listen.

However, one thing my father taught me while still in grade school: “There are two sides to every coin.” In response to this criticism of Rivera and the 2022 Washington offense.

I think Ron Rivera might perhaps man up and say, “Yes, we stunk on offense most of the time in 2022. Yes, our quarterbacks struggled last season, and that is why we have two other quarterbacks this season.

Yes, we ran the ball too much, and we have gone out and hired Eric Bieniemy to provide an entirely new offensive philosophy for this season. It will be his offense, and we needed to do this.

Yes, our two starting guards really struggled last season (Andrew Norwell, Trai Turner). This is why neither of them are with us this season. We need to be able to run the ball more effectively inside. Also, we need to be more athletic in our line to be able to throw screens behind the line of scrimmage to make it easier on Sam Howell as much as we can.”

Rivera has defended his use of analytics over the years. New owner Josh Harris is known for his reliance on analytics as owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils.

Will the Commanders keep or release Andrew Norwell?

Could we see news involving Norwell soon?

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Wasn’t it strange recently how Commanders head coach Ron Rivera completely omitted a 2022 starter when asked about who will move forward on the 2023 offensive line?

Recently when Commanders head coach Ron Rivera was asked about his offensive line, Rivera openly mentioned how at left guard second-year guard out of Tulsa Chris Paul and fourth-year lineman out of LSU, Saahdiq Charles will battle it out for the starting job.

What was amazing to those paying attention was that Rivera completely overlooked starter Andrew Norwell, not including him in the mix, though he remains on the current roster.

It is no secret to any close follower of the Commanders that the 2022 season was one in which the offensive line’s play took a downward slide from a fine 2021 season. Norwell certainly at times had his struggles.

In the previous off season, Washington had lost starting guards Brandon Scherff and Ereck Flowers. Scherff chose to leave for more money in Jacksonville, and the Commanders determined to release Flowers.

The Commanders then chose to bring in free agents Norwell and Trai Turner. These two however did not perform up to the level of play of Scherff and Flowers and the Washington offense struggled at times.

The Commanders released center Chase Roullier designating it a post-June 1 release which will save the Commanders more cap space. For months, many have expected the release of Norwell. Perhaps the Commanders will release Norwell after June 1. The release of Roullier and Norwell would save the Commanders around $12 million.

Norwell also managed apparently to not give any time to the media last season. Perhaps he was not actually pleased with his play in 2022? There is no mistaking that Coach Ron certainly appears to have moved on in his own mind from Norwell.

Is the Commanders James Smith-Williams appreciated enough?

James Smith-Williams is one of Washington’s more underappreciated players.

Being a final-round draft choice can certainly lead to a player being ignored.

Washington defensive end James Smith-Williams has been one such player. No doubt many Commanders fans are really certain of his name, they don’t recall his jersey number and they certainly don’t know where he played his college ball.

It was funny when even head coach Ron Rivera once spoke of the defensive end as “James Williams-Smith.“ Smith-Williams is still only 25, turning 26 on July 30. He enters this season knowing it is a contract year for him.

What type of year did the former North Carolina State Wolfpack have for the Commanders in 2022? Check out this tweet for some perspective:

Number 96 gets lost by the fan base when he is playing with teammates such as Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, Montez Sweat and Chase Young. But he is accustomed to this, as it occurred during his college days at NC State as well.

Illinois defensive coordinator and former North Carolina State defensive coach, Aaron Henry a guest on the “Al Galdi Podcast,” Tuesday reminded listeners:

“What a lot of people forget is James Smith-Williams was behind Bradley Chubb, Kentavius Street, Justin Jones and B.J. Hill. All them dudes were drafted in the NFL. ”

“So, the fact that he was even a 7th rounder…we knew that young man was going to be special. His off-the-field philanthropy combined with his football ability, the sky was the limit.”

“He was absolutely everything you wanted in terms of building a program. Hard worker, great student, always on time, never any issues, a leader.”

“That young man will play however long he wants to in the NFL. That’s a quality, incredible pillar for the Washington Commanders.”

Commanders make surprising draft pick at No. 16

Some were surprised the Commanders took Forbes over other cornerbacks, such as Christian Gonzalez. Rivera explained.

They took a cornerback at No. 16.

The Commanders? Yes.

Oh, who did they get, Christian Gonzalez? No.

But actually, the very next team on the clock the New England Patriots did select Gonzalez.

Oh, so they took Deonte Banks from Maryland! Nope, not Banks.

Oh, of course, it must have been Joey Porter Jr, the Commanders selected at No. 16. No, not Porter either.

The Commanders surprised everyone; with Gonzalez, Banks and Porter still available, they chose Mississippi State corner Emmanuel Forbes, all 166 pounds of him.

Head coach Ron Rivera came over and talked with Julie Donaldson, Logan Paulsen and Brian Mitchell just moments following the selection of Forbes.

Rivera spoke of Forbes’ ability to create turnovers. He said last year though the defense was better, they lacked takeaways, and they felt Forbes could really help in that area.

When asked about Forbes’ lack of size (166 pounds) Rivera responded  Forbes played in the tough SEC, and did not miss games, so they really feel good about selecting Forbes.

Rivera mentioned they interviewed Forbes at the NFL combine, he was one of their 30 visits, and they also Zoom interviewed him as well.

“He (Forbes) will come in and compete and help us and our team as we go forward,” said an optimistic Rivera. “With his ball skills, he has the ability to make plays.”

“He has good spatial awareness; he understands where he is on the field and then also recognizes where people are coming from. You see it when you put the tape on and watch him attack the ball, get his hands on the ball, make the interception. Those are all things we see as pluses and can work with.”

Rivera closed saying he wanted to express thanks to the personnel department, saying the college scouts had done an excellent job.

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Sports Junkies on Chase Young: A ‘huge bust so far’

The Commanders have a big decision to make on Chase Young — and soon.

It certainly was not a dull offseason Monday, when the “Sports Junkies” of 106.7 The Fan began discussing Chase Young and the Commanders.

NFL teams have until May 1 to pick up the fifth-year option on first-round picks selected in the 2020 NFL draft. The Commanders selected defensive end Chase Young No. 2 overall in 2020.

Three of the four were present Monday, and here are some quotes from John Auville, Eric Bickel,  Jason Bishop and producer “Valdez” as they raised their concerns.

JA: “Personally, I  would not be comfortable guaranteeing him (Chase Young) $17 Million for the 5th-year option.

JB: “If he has a bomb year, but can you picture that?

EB: “I think it is worth the gamble not to pay him. Motivate him, have him have a ball-out year, and then you reward him.”

JB: “I don’t know that I am tagging him after an 11-sack season. If he has 15,17,19? Then that is different. But as I said earlier, ‘I can’t picture him having that type of year’ .”

EB: “If he comes out there this year and has four sacks. They should cut him.”

JA: “If he only has four sacks and plays 17 games? Then he would be one of the biggest top-five draft busts of all time.”

EB: “The guy is a huge bust so far… Maybe he should go to WWE. He would probably be a great wrestler.”

Valdez: “It sounds like Ron (Rivera) is using the ownership change to not reward Chase. If Ron doesn’t want to reward Chase, then why do I want to?”

EB: “If you just look at this from a production standpoint, he hasn’t earned it.

Valdez: “If you are Ron and the organization, you had success doing this with Daron Payne. You have a formula to do this.”

Valdez: “If I am running an organization and I have challenged a player for a good season, and they don’t want that, that is not the kind of player I want on my team, right?”

Valdez: “If you are going to be pouty because we are trying to challenge you and motivate you?”

JA: “Maybe part of this is he is 23, and maybe he is immature. I don’t know him personally, but maybe he has some growing up to do.”

EB: “What do you think is the likelihood of him having a 15-sack season?”

JB: “Zero, zero percent.”

JA: “Eight to ten percent.”

EB: “Ten percent, one in ten.”

Here is the link for the full audio segment.

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Commanders Ron Rivera says there will be a QB competition

Sam Howell is going to have to the earn the position.

Ron Rivera was not mincing words Tuesday, when he was talking with the local media (at the owners meetings) about his quarterbacks.

The Commanders head coach is heading into his fourth season and yes, he will start a fourth quarterback in his fourth season opener as Washington’s coach.

“I think its open right now, I really do. All I said was that Sam [Howell] was going to get the first crack. I didn’t say that Sam was the guy. He’s going to have to come in and earn it. And if Jacoby [Brissett] comes through and earns it, I’ll play Jacoby.”

When the Commanders conduct their many practices and three preseason games. what will be the determining factor for Rivera in the determining whom his 2023 starter will be? “I’m going to play that guy that we believe at the end of the day gives us the best chance at winning football games.”

Rivera was asked how he would handle the competition for the starting quarterback.

“From my experience and watching how things unfolded for Andy [Reid] when I was with him. How we did things in Chicago with [Former Head Coach] Lovie Smith. These were guys that came in, had a plan and had guys compete, rotating guys, tracking every snap making sure it was as equal as possible.”

One thing we are hoping to do is to work with one of the teams that we end up getting as a preseason game partner. We hope to do that; we will see how that unfolds whether we are allowed to with the league because, again, they have to schedule it and make sure the schedule fits then we can talk about it with them. We would love to do that because it creates the kind of opportunity to get more in-depth. So we’ll see how it all goes.”

Rivera expressed he feels it is more difficult to evaluate a quarterback competition. He stated quarterback rather than merely being one of the positions, “is THE position.”

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Rivera confident Commanders stronger at QB in 2023 offseason

The head coach is excited about his quarterbacks in 2023.

Ron Rivera really likes his top two quarterbacks.

Tuesday at the owners meetings in Phoenix, Rivera spoke with the Washington media.

Rivera is really looking forward to having the newly signed Jacoby Brissett in his quarterback room.

“A couple of things about Jacoby. First of all, when you target a guy, you want to do a background and kind of see how people feel about him. See if there is any issues or anything. The biggest thing we kept hearing was that he is great to be around young quarterbacks. The next thing you hear is that he’s a guy that learns very quickly. He is a very bright and very smart guy. He knows a lot of football.”

Rivera believes Brissett has the necessary physical skills to come in and contribute on the playing field as well.

“You see a guy that has good athletic skills, has good quarterback skills, has a good arm, has a quick twitch to him and makes good decisions for the most part. He is athletic. This is a guy that we thought we’d bring in, he’s going to compete.”

Rivera believes Brissett’s NFL experience, his athleticism and drive will be good for both the team in general and Sam Howell in particular. “He’s going to push [QB] Sam [Howell], and Sam is going to push him. I really think we will have a really good room because of guys like that.”

Rivera believes he saw Howell mature during his rookie season and believes Howell is ready to play in his second season.

“I think there is a certain point towards the end of the season last season that we started seeing some real positive signs that really showed you that he is very confident and comfortable. Knowing what we did, you really started to see that because when he was the number two guy, he got reps. A couple of times some things happened in practice and you would see him fix it himself. That was always something that you look for.”

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Andy Reid: Commanders ‘are getting juice’ with Bieniemy

Andy Reid hated losing Beiniemy but wants him to land a head-coaching job. He believes he and Ron Rivera will work well together.

“I can brag on him (Eric Bieniemy) all day,” said Andy Reid opening his time with Brian Mitchell and JP Finlay on 106.7 The Fan Tuesday.

Reid, former Philadelphia Eagles coach, and current Kansas City Chiefs head coach has coached in four Super Bowls, winning two. Mitchell upfront praised Reid as someone who worked to understand his players.

Finlay was direct asking why would a successful offensive coordinator like Bieniemy leave Reid, Patrick Mahomes Travis Kelcie and winning Super Bowls to take the Commanders offensive coordinator’s job?

Reid replied that he and Bieniemy talked often, keeping the communications line open. “I’m not telling you I wanted to lose him to Washington, but at the same time, you want what is best for your guys.”

Reid expressed Bieniemy has worked hard towards the opportunity for a head coach job, but it hasn’t yet worked out, “some of it was because I think of the shadow I cast. And we talked about it. This gives him an opportunity to run his show.”

“I told EB if he could get with a defensive head coach, then normally what they are going to do is let you run with it (offense). That is what he is going to be able to do. That way he puts his name on it. There is no more Andy Reid on the sideline. It is all about EB, and he deserves that opportunity.”

“He will work great with Ron; Ron is phenomenal. They are two different personality types, but both of them love ball and both of them can teach.”

Mitchell inquired regarding what he called “the myth” that Bieniemy doesn’t get along with his players. Reid agreed, “Yes, you need some juice in this thing. That is what the Commanders are getting; they are getting juice with EB. He loves his players.”

“He is going to tell them when they are doing good and when they are not doing good. He is going to teach them how to do better when they screw up. I think every player wants this, and that is how he operates. He is going to come at you. He is going to challenge you. That is healthy. There is nothing wrong with that.

“He wants to give everybody the opportunity to be great. If the guys are willing to accept that and actually try to be great and not just talk about it, then you are going to win a lot of games.”

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Derek Carr to the Saints: What does that mean for the Commanders?

Could the Saints’ signing of Carr have an impact on the Commanders?

What does it mean for the Washington Commanders that the New Orleans Saints have agreed on a four-year contract with Derek Carr?

Carr, the former Raiders starting quarterback going to the Saints means the Saints will most definitely make a roster move at quarterback.

Last week, both Martin Mayhew and Ron Rivera, while saying Sam Howell is indeed Washington’s QB1, but can’t yet be simply given the starting job, made it clear they will be looking for a quarterback.

They have said competition is essential and frankly, shouldn’t we be in agreement with them on this one? Competition is essential. I’d love for Howell who lasted until round 5 (144 overall) to develop into a great franchise quarterback for Washington.

But for now, in 2023, Sam Howell needs to face actual competition through the OTAs, minicamps, training camp and preseason games, and may the best man win the starting job.

The Saints QB1 going into the 2021 season was Jameis Winston. However, he suffered an ACL injury in 2021 limiting him to a seven-game season. Then again in 2022, Winston was limited to a mere three games due to some cracked vertebrates and a torn ankle tendon.

Winston’s cap number for the upcoming 2023 season is scheduled to be $15,600,000. Yet, the Saints signed Derek Carr Monday. Winston is going to be released.

If the Saints release Winston prior to June 1, he would be an $11,200,000 cap hit for 2023. If he is released after June 1, he will only be a $2,800,000 dead cap hit for 2023.

With his injuries over the last two seasons, one could rightly ask, “Is Winston damaged goods?” Perhaps he is; I don’t really know for certain how he is doing physically. On the other side of the coin, Winston’s value is trending downward. Washington may be able to sign him to compete for the QB1 role for the Commanders.

Winston did pass for 5,000 yards for the Bucs in 2019. There is no questioning his arm or ability to go deep. Remember, Eric Bieniemy has been promised more input as the assistant head coach and offensive coordinator. Might Bieniemy like to give a look at Jameis Winston?

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