Commanders’ Ron Rivera furious over timing of Jimmy Garoppolo report

Washington Commanders fans were thrown for a loop Sunday morning when ESPN insider Adam Schefter pushed a report from several days earlier that claimed the Commanders had a deal in place to acquire Jimmy Garoppolo from the 49ers.

Per Schefter, the Commanders and 49ers worked out the parameters of a trade involving Garoppolo and multiple draft picks at this year’s Combine. The report insinuated Garoppolo’s decision to undergo surgery on his throwing shoulder torpedoed talks and Washington pivoted to acquiring Carson Wentz.

The verbiage of the report didn’t quite add up and insider JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington swiftly refuted the scoop, saying the Commanders did inquire about Garoppolo but were aware of his ailing shoulder well before they inquired. It’d be franchise malpractice not to do any digging on the shoulder.

Additionally, Finlay noted Wentz was higher on Washington’s QB wishlist than Garoppolo; thereby putting Schefter’s report into further question.

As you could imagine, Ron Rivera didn’t appreciate the timing of the report, as it was pushed hours before Washington’s game vs the Eagles. The normally-mild-mannered head coach was furious addressing the report after the loss.

Commanders head coach Ron Rivera is furious over the timing of the Jimmy Garoppolo report.

"“You guys, that was a bullcrap report just so everybody understands that,” Rivera said. “Okay. I didn’t talk to anybody about that. I’m not sure where that all came from. I’m disappointed that came out like that, especially in today’s game, you know, I really am because I didn’t talk to anybody about Jimmy Garoppolo. The timing is what really upsets me.”“Yeah, we’re getting ready to play Philadelphia, c’mon that’s what I’m disappointed in I really am. Because again I think whatever it is for whatever reason does it really have to get out or can they wait until we finish our game and then come out. I’m just disappointed it got out.”"

You may not agree with how Rivera addresses he media after losses, but the head coach deserves credit for taking Schefter (and ESPN) to task here.

After all, there was zero reason for Schefter to push the rumor hours before Carson Wentz was set to face off against his former team. Schefter will surely deny any wrongdoing, but why push the narrative that Wentz wasn’t his new team’s first choice before his first game against the team that drafted him?

Obviously Wentz was full of emotion. Why even risk messing with his mental before such a big game by pushing such a significant report?

That’s not what you’d expect from an esteemed insider, but Schefter’s had a propensity to cause controversy in his line of work. Some of his tweets/reporting during the Deshaun Watson saga were repulsive and lacked a shred of sensitivity. You might recall Schefter’s callous tweet after Dwayne Haskins’ passing, too.

Again, there was nothing wrong with the initial report, which appeared in an ESPN article several days earlier. The fact Schefter pushed the story Sunday morning is what Rivera took issue with, and he had every right to say his piece on the matter.