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Ron Rivera made another appearance on Good Morning America and talked about dealing with his cancer treatments while coaching an NFL team. He has three weeks of treatments left and one more cycle of chemotherapy. He talked about having a strong support system in place. And also touched on the need to have affordable health care when dealing with something like this.
Good Morning America
Thank you for sharing @RiverboatRonHC message. Stay strong, keep battling and thank you to all the Drs & nurses taking care of patients dealing with illnesses from Covid to cancer and everything in between. #Godblesshealthcareworkers @WashingtonNFL https://t.co/HzcB96BIAB
— Stephanie Rivera (@CoachRiv2) October 5, 2020
Thanks to @NFL head coach @RiverboatRonHC of the @WashingtonNFL team for raising valuable funds for @AmericanCancer and #CrucialCatch, as announced this morning on @GMA! Dollars raised support screening and early detection for communities in need. https://t.co/2fb2bMFozS
— American Cancer Society (@AmericanCancer) October 5, 2020
Cancer treatment:
Ron Rivera on @GMA this morning. Said he feels good the day after yesterday's game. Hydrated, watched some football, and was in bed by 8 pm.
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) October 5, 2020
Ron Rivera said he has three weeks of treatment left, including one more cycle of chemotherapy.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) October 5, 2020
Ron Rivera, on @GMA this morning, talking about why it’s so important to him to continue to coach while fighting cancer: pic.twitter.com/Pt6giCSVVr
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) October 5, 2020
Health care:
.@RiverboatRonHC on cancer: "I have it. It doesn't have me," relaying what the late @StuartScott said. Says he has three more weeks of treatment & one more round of chemo. #RiveraStrong @WashingtonNFL @GMA pic.twitter.com/GBmwCZNUkn
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) October 5, 2020
In an interview with ESPN yesterday and again on GMA this morning, Ron Rivera has spoken out about the value of quality healthcare and has urged people to vote.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) October 5, 2020
What he said on GMA: pic.twitter.com/f31LoobtIv
Support system:
“It means a lot. You know, when I first was diagnosed, I was angry. People have reached out and talked to me and have given me their examples or just sent their well wishes. It helps push me forward and I think that’s so important. When you go through something like this, you need a support system. When you have the right type of people pushing you, man, I tell you what it really helps. It gets your momentum going forward.”
Coach’s Corner:
“That really hit me — cause Mickey was such a fighter. Just to see him again. That hit home — It was awesome.”
Rivera then spoke to local reporters later in the morning, and continued to talked about the effects of cancer treatment. He has to listen to his body when going through this, and said last week was a rough one for him. Rivera missed one practice, and didn’t participate in a post-practice practice another day. Treatments hit him hard, and he was also slowed down during yesterday’s game. The disappointing part for him is not being there for the guys when he misses time.
Rivera called it a tough situation for Dwayne Haskins Jr., but said there were some positives yesterday. Coaches want Haskins to handle protection calls better. Rivera also mentioned the 18 yard sack Haskins took, something that can’t happen when you’re in scoring range. He did make some good throws yesterday, and has shown growth.
Washington had some free agent workouts scheduled, but decided to cancel them due to COVID-19 concerns. There have been several cases, and an outbreak with the Tennessee Titans this week that led to two postponed games. Rivera wants to review their process, and maintain safety protocols for everyone.
Zoom Presser
Listen to your body:
Ron Rivera said he's taken two naps today. It's part of listening to his body.
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 5, 2020
Rivera on the mic.
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) October 5, 2020
On his physical condition. Says each day and week for the remainder of his treatment (3 weeks) will be it's own unique situation. He knows his body and will have to pay attention to signs. Says he feels OK today.
Support system:
Rivera said that he feels "very fortunate" because of his support system of coaches, players and medical staff. That's allowed him to prioritize his cancer battle when necessary.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Rough week:
Ron Rivera says of his cancer fight that last week caught him off guard. It was harder than he was expecting. Also is touched by how incredible the nurses/doctors are that work in the cancer world
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 5, 2020
Coach Rivera: By 11am has had 2 naps. Says he’s been taken back how hard this is. Listens to the doctors, tries to be vigilant, but last week snuck up on him. The demand was more than he expected & the disappointing part, is not being there for the guys. #RiveraStrong
— Julie Donaldson (@juliedonaldson_) October 5, 2020
Dwayne Haskins Jr.:
Rivera on Haskins: "There were some things that were positive. ... That's what we're looking for. It's a tough situation."
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 5, 2020
On Haskins' 18-yard sack on 2nd-and-goal, Rivera said he would have liked to see Haskins immediately find his outlet. If he couldn't, he needed to throw the ball away.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Said part of what they wanted him to do better was handle protection calls....
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 5, 2020
COVID-19 protocols:
Ron Rivera says Washington is trying to reinforce Covid protocols as with the everyday testing there is a tendency to get lax. Ryan Vermillion remains vigilant
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 5, 2020
Cancelled free agent workouts:
Rivera on the cancelled workout: Says they are reviewing the process - "We just want to make sure" and says their were several players that they had to cancel on "We truly apologize." #WashingtonFootball
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) October 5, 2020
Rivera confirms the practice cancelation. Says they wanted to take a break and review the situation, the process. Apologized to the players in town for the workout that were sent home. https://t.co/9cmxoicznT
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) October 5, 2020
Landon Collins:
Rivera said Landon Collins has been very physical. He plays hard and physical all the time because he's trying to make things happen.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 5, 2020
Rivera said Landon Collins has been very physical and playing hard. However, sometimes he performs outside the realm of the scheme because he's pushing to make things happen.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
First quarter grades:
Rivera doesn't give grades to players, but he does believe the team has played hard through the first quarter of the season.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 5, 2020
Rivera was asked to grade the team's performance a quarter of the way through the season: "I don't give grades."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Said they're playing hard, developing and have a "ways to go."
Ron Rivera response when he was asked to grade the teams performance: "I don't give grades. They've been playing hard, they're learning, developing and doing the things they need to do. But there's a ways to go."
— Logan Campbell (@loganncampbelll) October 5, 2020
NFC East:
Rivera said the team is facing interesting circumstances because even with a 1-3 record, there will be opportunities to make a push for the division title. Rivera has dealt with something like this in 2014, when Carolina made the playoffs at 7-8-1.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Baby Shark:
This is why Ron Rivera is just different.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) October 5, 2020
Please watch. It's pretty great. pic.twitter.com/ANycfZEKbr
Ron Rivera is a fan of Baby Shark and went through the dance briefly. He also discussed being at the hospital, seeing a kid going through his last round and the doctors preparing to do that celebration for him. Was unable to stay for it
— Rhiannon Walker (@InstantRHIplay) October 5, 2020
During one of his cancer treatments, Ron Rivera said he saw doctors rehearsing "Baby Shark" for a kid on his last treatment. He cited it as a point of inspiration, and he shouted-out the Nats. Rivera also did a rendition of baby shark, mommy shark and daddy shark.
— Sam Fortier (@Sam4TR) October 5, 2020
Defense:
Rivera said the defense had their moment at times to give the team a chance. There were some lapses, like the 50-yard touchdown from Lamar Jackson, but overall he felt like there were some good moments in the game.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 5, 2020
Scott Turner’s offense:
Head Coach Ron Rivera spoke to the media about what he saw from the offense.
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) October 5, 2020
Rivera adds that the game plan against Ravens featured a lot of WR screens and underneath throws by design to slow down Ravens pass rush and blitz packages
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 5, 2020
Rivera said Washington was playing an aggressive defense, so they wanted to get the ball out of Haskins' hands quickly. That's why screens and quick throws were heavily used in Sunday's game plan.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 5, 2020
Ron Rivera says he's been "very pleased" with what OC Scott Turner has been doing offensively. Rivera especially likes how they're trying to find different ways to get the ball to Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic and Terry McLaurin. The trio combined 292 yards on 36 touches Sunday.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Ron Rivera said that in Jan. and Feb., he did a deep dive into the four games in which Scott Turner was Carolina's offensive coordinator and "got a good feel for what Scotty is all about."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Added it's all about growth and development for the unit moving forward.
Here is Ron Rivera's full answer on why @WashingtonNFL ran so many screens and quick passes. Its personnel is also conducive to this type of attack. pic.twitter.com/rcSHs0weOd
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 5, 2020
Terry McLaurin:
On Sunday, CBS analyst and Hall of Fame WR James Lofton compared Terry McLaurin’s footwork to Jerry Rice. So I asked Ron Rivera about the comparison: “Wow. That's a great observation.”https://t.co/DMVvmoPMAO
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 5, 2020