Why Commanders coach Ron Rivera went back to Carson Wentz
Washington sports media and Commanders fans today are enjoying target practice at Ron Rivera.
Fans, and yes, the media, are taking their shots at Rivera. I was not a fan of the Carson Wentz trade. Hey, I was out there prior to the trade proclaiming they needed to be careful because their posture was revealing they could be fleeced in a trade. Here it is.
From the day of the trade, every Commanders teammate and coach who spoke of Wentz expressed he has been a good teammate and a good leader in 2022. Taylor Heinicke even spoke of Wentz being a great help to him.
Though Washington initially went 5-1 in games started by Heinicke, the offense was leaving plays and points on the field, resulting in the team going 0-2-1 in Heinicke’s last three starts. In the turning point of the season, the Commanders offense under Heinicke went 1-10 on third downs, falling to the Giants at FedEx Field.
Rivera no doubt contemplated if Heinicke had hit the wall. Why not? Didn’t Rivera witness this in 2021 when in weeks 14-17, the Washington offense stalled, losing four straight games?
On the other hand, didn’t Rivera know Wentz had won big games in earlier years? Rivera knew Wentz had the experience, the arm talent. If Wentz could hit play-action passes off of successful Brian Robinson runs, perhaps he would make more of the plays that Heinicke was missing. Very reasonable, yes?
You can blame Rivera all you want for being unaware they could be eliminated from the playoffs Sunday. He should have known, yes. In addition, he has enough people on the staff; he should have delegated someone to do the research and report the scenarios to him.
Yet, the offense was fading again down the 2022 final stretch. Heinicke didn’t play well in either game against the Giants. Rivera gets paid big bucks to make the major decisions. I personally don’t fault Rivera for going back to Wentz.
One thing for certain, that decision was not a simple one, regardless of how many of you think it was.
How good were the Commanders during Heinicke’s nine starts? Well, Washington only won one game (Eagles) against a team that has a winning record going into the last week.
That is one stat I guarantee Ron Rivera did know last Sunday.
