Getty Things grew heated during a press conference for Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera where he defended a former Indianapolis Colts quarterback.
The Indianapolis Colts aren’t without their own struggles at quarterback this season. Simply put, the team’s transition to Matt Ryan has not gone as smoothly as hoped.
But it could be worse. In fact, it could be a lot worse.
Last year, the Colts had quarterback Carson Wentz. This past offseason, though, Indianapolis general manager Chris Ballard dealt the 29-year-old signal caller to the Washington Commanders as if Wentz were a hot potato.
Whether his own doing or not, controversy has surrounded Wentz over the last few years. The latest dispute around the quarterback came to a point after Thursday Night Football when Commanders head coach Ron Rivera opened into a fiery rant and stormed off during his postgame press conference.
The rant was in response to a report from a team of ESPN senior writers that claimed Commanders owner Dan Snyder was the member of the Washington organization that wanted Wentz, not Rivera.
“Everybody keeps wanting to say I didn’t want anything to do with Carson [Wentz]. Well, bull****. I’m the f****** guy that pulled out the sheets of paper, that looked at the analytics, that watched the tape … when we were in Indianapolis,” Rivera said. “And that’s what pisses me off because the young man doesn’t deserve to have that all the time.
“I’m sorry, I’m done.”
Ron Rivera’s reaction to the report that owner Dan Snyder demanded the team trade for Carson Wentz:
(🎥 via @Commanders)
Rivera Defends Wentz Days After Trolling Quarterback
The fiery exchange for Rivera was quite a different tune from what he said a few days prior.
In a press conference on October 10, Rivera received a question about why Washington’s NFC East rivals have been quicker with their rebuilding processes.
The Commanders head coach didn’t have a long-winded rant like he did on October 14. Instead, he answered with one word.
“Quarterback,” said Rivera with a defiant stare.
Rivera continued when pressed about the Dallas Cowboys dealing with an injury at quarterback:
“They started with Dak [Prescott], they build around Dak, and the offense is built around Dak,” Rivera said. “Their backup’s a guy who is very solid inside of what they do, and the truth is this is a quarterback-driven league.
“If you look at the teams that have been able to sustain success, they’ve been able to build it around a specific quarterback.”
With those comments plus the report about Snyder being the one who really wanted Wentz, it became open season on the former Colts signal caller.
But as Rivera argued, Wentz hasn’t necessarily done anything to “deserve” the criticism that’s piled on him this week. The quarterback’s biggest fault is he hasn’t played particularly well.
Wentz has completed 62.1% of his passes for 1,489 passing yards and 10 touchdowns with 6 interceptions this season. He hasn’t had much help, as he’s been sacked a league-high 23 times. But Wentz is averaging 6.4 yards per attempt, which is ranked 26th in the NFL.
The best way to put an end to the quarterback “noise” in Washington is for Wentz to improve the rest of the season.
Rivera Desperately Trying to Build a Winning Culture
The “noise” in Washington goes beyond quarterback. Snyder being the guy to pull the trigger on the Wentz trade was a mere footnote in the ESPN report released on October 13, which was a lengthy inside look of the Commanders organization.
Amazon play-by-play broadcaster Al Michael piled on during the stream of Thursday Night Football when he shared his thoughts on Snyder and the Washington club.
“Just my feeling, I think what the league would love, is for [Dan] Snyder to sell the team, not have to go to a vote, but just sell the team,” Michaels said during the live stream. “He’s just becoming a major problem around the league, obviously. And, we’ll see what happens. I think it’s got a long way to go, and Dan very well-known for digging his heels into the ground.”
Rivera’s frustration displayed in his rant could be just as much from the controversy around his owner as Wentz. Rivera is trying to build a new culture in Washington, and he doesn’t appear to be getting much help from his boss.
“I’m trying to get beyond all this stuff that’s on the outside that’s noise as far as I’m concerned,” Rivera said. “What I’m focusing on is the development of this football team.”
“I don’t want to get talking about something that I can’t control, anyways. I have no input, I have nothing to do with that; what I want to do is everything in that room. And that’s what I just wish we could stay focused on. It’s difficult, it’s hard, but for whatever reason, we’re going to stick to what’s interesting and that’s playing football.”
Whatever the real source was for Rivera’s anger, Wentz appreciated his coach publicly claiming he wanted him in Washington.
“Coach Rivera, he’s awesome,” Wentz told the media after Thursday Night Football. “I’ve got a ton of respect for him, playing in this league for a while from afar, and getting to play for him is even better. He speaks his mind, and he’ll be direct and to the point, and in this business that means a lot.
“Guys love that about him, and he’s going to be straight up and very motivational. Guys respond to him very well. I’m appreciative of him.”