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Ron Rivera has coached his first losing game as head coach of the Washington Football Team, losing 30-15 to the Arizona Cardinals on the road. He said they are a young team, and they have a lot to learn which will come with time. They will learn a lot from today’s loss, and work on improving all around. Communication continues to be an issue in the secondary.
Rivera made some decisions that were questioned throughout the game. He was asked about not using his timeouts, and said he was concerned with injuries after losing Brandon Scherff(knee) earlier. He also didn’t go for it on 4th down at the Cardinals 6 yard line when they were down 20-0 because he wanted to put some points on the board.
Washington Football Team | Postgame Press Conferences https://t.co/Vvzu9OJmcB
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) September 20, 2020
Dwayne Haskins Jr.:
Rivera on Dwayne Haskins: "Early on he missed some opportunities."
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) September 20, 2020
Not calling timeouts:
Ron Rivera said on the decision not to call timeouts, that he didn't want to expose his players to injuries.
— Rhiannon Walker (@InstantRHIplay) September 20, 2020
Again, Ron Rivera emphasizes he wouldn't use his timeouts late bc he didn't want to expose his players to injury. He said it's a long season and they'd already lost one important player (G Brandon Scherff).
— Sam Fortier (@Sam4TR) September 20, 2020
Missed opportunities:
Ron Rivera is addressing the media now. "When you get chances, you can't miss them."
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 20, 2020
Brandon Scherff injury:
Ron Rivera said that he doesn't have anything to add to Brandon Scherff's injury other than it being a leg injury.
— Rhiannon Walker (@InstantRHIplay) September 20, 2020
Beating themselves:
Rivera said this is a great learning experience for Washington. They played two teams today, Rivera said, the Cardinals and themselves.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 20, 2020
"We played two teams today -- them and ourselves. And we hurt ourselves today." Ron Rivera said they're not experienced enough to overcome the kind of mistakes they made today.
— Rhiannon Walker (@InstantRHIplay) September 20, 2020
Head coach Ron Rivera specifies the self-inflicted wounds in the first half: "We get into third-and-long situations, we give up big plays. We take the ball away, we give it right back. We force a punt, we fumble the football. We can't do those things."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) September 21, 2020
Communication breakdown:
Ron Rivera said on the first touchdown there was a miscommunication and that's something that needs to be corrected.
— Rhiannon Walker (@InstantRHIplay) September 20, 2020
Rivera said the there was a miscommunication on Arizona's first touchdown. That's why DeAndre Hopkins was wide open in the back-middle of the end zone.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) September 20, 2020
Rivera admits that there was a communication lapse between Landon Collins and Moreau on the first Arizona Touchdown. @WSHFootballSI
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) September 20, 2020
Kyler Murray:
"We never really put ourselves position." Rivera called Kyler Murray "a heck of a player."
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 20, 2020
4th down:
Ron Rivera said he was considering going for it on fourth down when they kicked the field goal, but he wanted to give the guys something to have some enthusiasm and not feeling a shut out.
— Rhiannon Walker (@InstantRHIplay) September 20, 2020
Ron Rivera on the decision to kick the field goal on fourth-and-6: "I was considering it, but based on certain circumstances, I wanted to points up." ... Said he did he want to his team to be shut out."
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) September 20, 2020
Young team:
Ron Rivera: "These are growing pains, guys. ... We just have a lot to learn. We're a young team."
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) September 20, 2020
Rivera said they have to maintain success on drives. That's true on offense and defense, Rivera said. "We're a good team, but we have a lot to learn."
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 20, 2020
Rivera said it takes about 5,000 reps for a player to learn and understand what they're supposed to do. Washington is not there yet, he said.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 20, 2020
Lessons from this game:
Rivera said Washington will learn from this game. There's nothing they can do about what happened except learn from it, he said, and they'll move forward.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) September 20, 2020
Head Coach Ron Rivera on moving on from today's loss: "You're not going to win all the battles, but you need to learn from them. That's what we're going to do. We're going to get better and grow."
— Logan Campbell (@loganncampbelll) September 20, 2020
No halftime IV:
Ron Rivera "this (game) is history"
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) September 20, 2020
"If we don't learn from this..." they blew an opportunity.
Rivera says he was drinking a lot of water/Gatorade and had to use the bathroom at half, so didn't need an IV this week. @WSHFootballSI
Rivera said no halftime IV this game. Said he felt good and hydrated.
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) September 20, 2020