For the Washington Redskins, Ron Rivera is the perfect hire

Why Ron Rivera was the perfect hire

Making a list of what Ron Rivera brings to this team would be longer than a grocery shopping list when cooking for a family of 50. This man will have an impact on this team that is much-needed, and I’ll break it down in a couple of main points. From the little things, like removing ping-pong tables and shuffleboard tables in the locker room, to finally establishing a Super Bowl culture that has been missing since 1992, the Redskins are finally in good hands.

The hiring of Riverboat Ron comes as a shock because Dan Snyder seems to always meddle somehow with this team, whether it be allegedly in the draft rooms or with the players on the field. Dan seems to always have a final say without trusting the football minds around him. Rivera, a no-nonsense kind of guy, made it clear when introduced into the organization that every decision will be a collaborative effort with the football minds around him, and ultimately, he has the final say.

This is a difference that is very much needed. Dan is finally trusting football minds around him and not trying to be the Jerry Jones-esque owner many believe him to be. This is refreshing and the right way to go if this organization is to finally progress toward winning.

Ron Rivera was the perfect hire because no man truly understands the value of defense and the personnel at hand like Ron Rivera, especially given all the head coach candidates. Ron Rivera’s first coaching move was hiring his defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio, who shares similar defensive philosophies as him, including one of which involves finally moving the Redskins base defense into a 4-3. It’s a scheme that benefits the personnel mightily; one that’ll have the current “OLBs” be more at home with their hands in the dirt.

Bringing Rivera on board finally reinvents everything that mentally and philosophically was wrong with this team for the years Snyder has owned the team. Ron Rivera brings in what’s most important for any professional team. He brings in a culture that revolves around structure, accountability, leadership, and lastly, winning. With a career record that’s well over .500, without his franchise QB in Carolina for over 20 games, Rivera has gotten the most out of every player to put a Panthers jersey on during his tenure.

Lastly, Ron Rivera was the perfect hire because he finally brings the Redskins back to relevance. This is more of a “what the future holds” type of deal, but some prominent NFL personalities like Matthew Berry questioned the impact of Rivera as a coach. That question is easily answered like this:

Rivera, in many people’s eyes, is not the Tier 1, elite NFL coach. He’s a great coach, a B/B+ level coach that’ll bring things that are desperately needed for this franchise to succeed. His impact on the field will be noticed immediately, as he will buff this defensive unit up to the caliber it should’ve been all season.

But Rivera also has his presence in the locker room, and the ability to turn this franchise back into the historic, competitive, structured franchise it once was, That makes him an A+ hire. Rivera is a coach that’ll establish all things needed to progress and win in January and February, both on and off the field. Coaching staff and front office, like Rivera did in Carolina. For a franchise like the Redskins who have been allergic to winning, this has an insurmountable impact that no dollar amount or opinion can cover.

This is a generational, decade-long type of culture that is looking to be set. Everything this Redskins franchise has been missing from the top down is finally coming with the hire of Riverboat Ron.

After looking at the track record of Ron Rivera, seeing all the things he did in Carolina, hearing the things every player who has played for him has said, the Redskins looked to have made the best possible hire they could’ve made. This is a perfect hire. This, my friends, should have everybody sold on this team. The Redskins can establish themselves as a team that is turning it around. Maybe, finally, Dan Snyder got it right. Nobody brings what was needed more than Ron Rivera, the perfect hire.