ASHBURN — Washington coach Ron Rivera said Wednesday that Dwayne Haskins’ benching was made in an attempt to try and win the NFC East. After four games, Washington (1-3) is just a half-game back of the division-leading 1-2-1 Philadelphia Eagles.
Ahead of Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams, Rivera benched Haskins for Kyle Allen — who started 12 games last year for the Carolina Panthers, Rivera’s last stop. Rivera said Allen knows offensive coordinator Scott Turner’s system and can put the offense in a better position to win games.
After this week, Washington has a pivotal three-game stretch upcoming against divisional foes in which they face the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys and then the Giants again.
Here’s a roundup from Rivera’s press conference:
Ron Rivera on switching quarterbacks: “It goes back to the schedule. … We’ve got three divisional games coming up.”
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 7, 2020
“This is not an indictment on Dwayne … more so than the situation than we are in.”
Ron Rivera: “This has been thought out by me for a while. To me, it goes back to the beginning of the schedule.” He figured with four NFC games coming up, incl. 3 division games, they’re better off putting ball in Kyle Allen’s hands bc he’s more familiar w/the system.
— Adam Zielonka (@Adam_Zielonka) October 7, 2020
Rivera: “Our division is open.”
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 7, 2020
Rivera: “I hadn’t seen the growth I was lookng for in those four games.”
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 7, 2020
“I’m taking my shot! I’m here to win.” — Ron Rivera
— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) October 7, 2020
Ron Rivera says Haskins has “an NFL arm,” but lack of offseason work hurt him: “I wish Dwayne had had the OTAs, minicamps, preseason games … because he’d be further along.”
— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) October 7, 2020
Rivera said if one NFC East team was 4-0 or 3-1, the decision at QB might be different
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 7, 2020
Seeing the situation in the NFC East, Ron Rivera says “I’d be stupid not to take a shot” in trying to stack some wins
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 7, 2020
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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