Pressers

Ron Rivera Presser: We’d like to see Dwayne Haskins Jr. start fast, and be consistent from that point

Ron Rivera speaks to the media after today's practice

By Scott Jennings@ScottJenningsHH Sep 18, 2020, 3:00pm EDT

Ron Rivera talked about two Arizona Cardinals players that are going to get a lot of attention from Washington on Sunday. Chandler Jones is coming off a 19 sack season, and already got his first one of the year against the 49ers last week. Rivera said he wrecks things which is concerning with the amount of pressure the offensive line allowed last week. He also talked about Kyler Murray again. Rivera said he isn’t looking to run first, Murray wants to extend the play and run as a last option. He emphasized again how important it will be to contain the mobile QB on Sunday.

Washington’s injury list has been pretty small compared to previous seasons, and Rivera at first credited the NFL with ramping up the offseason as they worked into the shortened timeframe. He also said the teams uptempo practices helped prepare the team for the rigors of gameday. Head Trainer Ryan Vermillion and Rivera determined that practices over 2 hours and 15 minutes could lead to more injuries, so he limits the amount of time his teams practice to limit injuries.

Rivera said the Offensive Coordinator Scott Turner and QB Coach Ken Zampese both have experience with developing young QBs, and they have a plan in place for Dwayne Haskins Jr. Rivera would like to see Haskins start faster, and then be more consistent throughout the game. Haskins, like the rest of the team, started slowly vs the Eagles last week, but finished strong.

Press Conference - Ron Rivera https://t.co/jEJQ9yswGa
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) September 18, 2020

Injury Updates:

Washington's injury/game status report:

LB Cole Holcomb (knee) - DNP - OUT FOR SUNDAY

CB Kendall Fuller (knee) - Limited - QUESTIONABLE

LB Thomas Davis (calf) - Full - QUESTIONABLE
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) September 18, 2020

Kendall Fuller:

Kendall Fuller is questionable for Sunday's game, but his presence would mean a lot because of his abilities and help out with the game plan.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 18, 2020

Ron Rivera on Kendall Fuller - "He's a special guy" in terms of the jolt he can provides in the type of coverage they want to run.

Again, downgraded in terms of practice participation from full (Weds/Thurs) to limited (Friday). @WSHFootballSI
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) September 18, 2020

Chandler Jones:

Ron Rivera is talking to the media now. He said Chandler Jones does make things hard on the offense and does "wreck things." He's definitely a guy you have to pay attention to, he said.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 18, 2020

Kyler Murray:

Rivera called Kyler Murray a dynamic player who you have to account for outside of the pocket. He's looking to extend the plays, Rivera said, and rushing the ball is his last option.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 18, 2020

Artificial noise at FedEx Field:

Rivera said the ambient noise during the game helped the atmosphere a little bit. There was an echo during Washington's practice at FedExField during camp, and the artificial crowd noise dulled that.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 18, 2020

Preventing injuries:

Head coach Ron Rivera talking to the local media now. Said the "ramp-up" period was important in limiting soft-tissue injuries. Also said the up-tempo practices condition players to deal with the callousness of the game.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) September 18, 2020

Rivera said his teams rarely practice more than 2 hours and 15 minutes. That's because in his first few years in Carolina, him and head athletic trainer Ryan Vermillion noticed a lot of injuries happening after that threshold.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) September 18, 2020

Developing young QBs:

Rivera said both Ken Zampese and Scott Turner have experience working with younger quarterbacks. In their interviews, Rivera asked them about their plans for developing a young QB, and they had similar ideas.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 18, 2020

Dwayne Haskins Jr.:

Consistency will be in Week 2⃣ pic.twitter.com/7Wv3IYB36e
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) September 18, 2020

Ron Rivera wants a "little more consistency" out of Dwayne Haskins but says again that he's done a great job with everything else that's he's asked of him. @WSHFootballSI
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) September 18, 2020

Rivera said he wants "a little more consistency" from Haskins this week. Liked how he finished last week, "like to see him start fast and be consistent from that point.... He's done such a good job with the things I've asked of him, the intrinsic things that aren't measured"
— John Keim (@john_keim) September 18, 2020