Washington’s Ron Rivera says NFL season can still happen, but it will require discipline
“I’m concerned,” he said in response to a question about his own health, adding: “It comes down to being disciplined as a group, as an organization and as individuals. You have to be disciplined to understand that you can’t go out and not follow the protocols.”
Washington opened training camp Tuesday in Ashburn, Va., amid difficult circumstances. During the 30 minutes Rivera spoke to local media members via video conference, several more players across the league opted out of the 2020 season due to coronavirus concerns, as reports continued from Major League Baseball. The Miami Marlins’ outbreak has halted their season and put their season-opening opponent, the Philadelphia Phillies, in limbo while they await test results. The NFL is watching the situation closely because, like baseball, the league intends to hold its season without placing players and coaches in a bubble.
For Rivera, the question is how the Marlins’ outbreak began in the first place. If it started with someone grabbing dinner without wearing a mask, then he sees it as a process issue that can be prevented. Or, more accurately, “needs” to be prevented for football to be played this fall. While Rivera knows a “massive outbreak” could cancel the season, he believes it would be “very difficult” to put an 80-player roster, plus coaches and support staff, in a bubble.
“The thing that we are missing right now, as a society, is that we are not very diligent. We’re not very strict, and unfortunately, [the virus is] still kind of rampant right now.”
These big questions for the sport and the society, including whether football can be played this season, come as a reckoning is taking place within Rivera’s own organization. While the team’s recent decision to retire the “Redskins” name following pressure from sponsors, leading to the temporary adoption of Washington Football Team, did not bother Rivera, he said, the conversations stemming from the Black Lives Matter movement and the fallout from 15 former employees accusing the organization of fostering a culture of sexual harassment have weighed on him.
“Culture change” has been Rivera’s mantra since he was hired in January, and he said Tuesday he wants to diminish the divide between football and business operations, as well as instill a feeling of ownership in the organization for every employee, like he had when he played for former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka. This starts with an “open-door policy” and dispelling the atmosphere where people are afraid to tell the truth.
The past three months have been difficult but have provided good learning experiences, he said. He has grown closer to owner Daniel Snyder, with whom he speaks for about a half-hour per day. He has no regrets about coming to Washington.
“[This] has been hard, but for me, emotionally, I am excited about where I am and I’m excited about this opportunity,” he said. “This hasn’t dampened my approach and spirit with this organization. I feel very confident in what we can do here. … We want to create a situation and set of circumstances that all of our employees, coaches, players, all of them, feel that they are part of.”
The difficulty of leading a team in a single direction was on display, in a small way, the night before, when defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio shared a viral video featuring Stella Immanuel, a controversial Houston doctor who defended the use of hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug that has been promoted by President Trump. Immanuel also claimed “you don’t need a mask” to prevent transmission of the coronavirus.
After Facebook, Twitter and YouTube scrubbed Immanuel’s video from their platforms for promoting misinformation about the drug, Del Rio tweeted again in apparent support of the doctor. The team declined to comment on Del Rio’s tweets.
On Tuesday, as Rivera’s players reported for coronavirus testing, the head coach noticed the little effects of the pandemic. He didn’t recognize some of his players, a jarring realization for someone who considers himself a players’ coach. But without minicamp or organized team activities, as well as the masks his players wore, the situation became another reminder of how much progress he would need this team to make to be ready for Week 1.
“You have to wear a mask. You have to wash your hands. You have to properly distance yourself from one another,” Rivera repeated. “We’ve got to be really careful — and be smart.”
Read more:
