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Ron Rivera making progress in changing Washington Football Team’s culture

By Christopher King

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - FEBRUARY 26: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Redskins interviews during the second day of the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 26, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - FEBRUARY 26: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Redskins interviews during the second day of the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 26, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) /
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NEW ORLEANS, LA – JANUARY 07: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Carolina Panthers reacts during the second half of the NFC Wild Card playoff game against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 7, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA – JANUARY 07: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Carolina Panthers reacts during the second half of the NFC Wild Card playoff game against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 7, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

The 2020 Washington Football Team’s offseason was highlighted by new coaches, a scandal, and a name change.

Shortly after the Washington Football Team finished at a poor 3-13 record, Dan Snyder began a front office purge starting with Bruce Allen. Bruce Allen served as Washington’s team president for 10 years, and for many fans, including myself, it was 10 years too long. His tenure was just as poor as the performance of the team over the past 10 years, little success riddled with false hope and moments that had fans shaking their heads in disgust.

Bruce Allen was a change that Dan Snyder had no choice to make, but he began to relieve many other front office members of their duties including Eric Schaffer and Larry Hess. He also fired coaches Bill Callahan and Kevin O’Connell, the latter of who many fans believed could have been the offensive coordinator going forward. This purge that took place shortly after the 2019-2020 season ended was one that was over-due.

A cleaning of house was needed for this team to take steps forward. There was nothing that came out of the last 10 seasons to keep around. We can go around and nitpick the good ones, but at the end of the day, this team hasn’t performed well enough to keep anyone around. Replace the bad with good.

A change of culture

Ron Rivera took over as the head coach very shortly after the season ended. Rivera is the Washington Football Team’s most important hire since Joe Gibbs. He seems to have full control over personnel and staff decisions, a similar role that Bruce Allen had here. Ron Rivera is a winner and coaches with a style that is completely different from Jay Gruden, who seemed to have lost the locker room on several occasions as Washington’s Head Coach.

Riverboat Ron took a 15-1 Panthers team to the Super Bowl with an inexperienced, young quarterback in Cam Newton. He is the type of guy you want leading a young group of men that Washington currently has in their locker room.

The next notable acquisition from a management perspective is Jack Del Rio. Del Rio is another “no-nonsense” type of guy who commanded a top-two defense in Denver which landed him a head coaching gig with the Raiders. In 2016, Del Rio’s Raiders were best in the NFL in takeaway to giveaway ratio, something that is a good translation to success in the NFL. The Raiders made the playoffs that year with a young quarterback in Derek Carr and a young receiver in Amari Cooper (similar to Dwayne Haskins and Terry McLaurin).

Ron Rivera and Jack Del Rio are two guys you want in your corner, especially with a young group of guys who need a little molding. The last guy to touch on is Kyle Smith. Kyle Smith is not a new acquisition within management, as he has a total of 11 seasons with the Redskins. This is his first year with his new title Vice President of Player Personnel. This position seems like a “wait and see” kind of gig. If he performs well, he might be promoted to a type of general manager role that Washington as an organization have been waiting to have for some time now.

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