Why Rivera believes Wentz is Commanders’ solution at quarterback

ASHBURN — During the NFL scouting combine a few weeks ago, Ron Rivera, as part of his evaluation of Carson Wentz, started grinding through tape in a suite at Lucas Oil Stadium — the same building where Wentz had spent a season on the field, under center for the Indianapolis Colts.

The Washington Commanders coach was looking for an answer to a critical question: Could Wentz be the solution to Washington’s long-running problem at quarterback?

Rivera says he saw and heard enough about Wentz in the days since that he’s willing to hand the veteran the starter’s job in Washington this season — even if he admitted Thursday that the acquisition of Wentz won’t necessarily preclude Washington from drafting a rookie quarterback.

But on Thursday, Rivera repeatedly called Wentz his “QB1.”

“I’d love to see this be a long tenure,” Rivera said. “I do hope and I do mean that.” 

Wentz may have Rivera’s confidence, for now, but he arrives in Washington with a dinged reputation. His tenure with the Colts lasted just one year. Before that, the Philadelphia Eagles traded him away after benching him in 2020 for rookie Jalen Hurts.

Rivera said a review of Wentz’s tape, as well as where he ranked in certain statistical categories, convinced Washington to make the deal. Wentz finished last season ninth in QBR, a metric that differs from the traditional passer rating.  Rivera said Wentz’s skill set fits offensive coordinator Scott Turner’s preferred vertical passing attack, allowing them to throw the ball deep more often. 

Rivera said he had no qualms about the 29-year-old’s price tag. Washington gave Indianapolis two third-round picks (one that can become a second), swapped seconds and took on Wentz’s $28.3 million salary. Washington also received a seventh-round pick back in the deal. 

“The biggest reason was the sense of urgency,” Rivera said. “When you have an opportunity to get a young man that has that type of ability, you have to strike. We didn’t want to put ourselves in a position [where] we were going to have to outbid anybody. We wanted to make sure we got what we wanted.”

Under Rivera, Washington has used six different quarterbacks in two seasons, and Wentz will be No. 7. The quarterback turmoil led to Rivera openly vowing to upgrade at the position this offseason, with the coach telling reporters the team would explore “all avenues.” 

While Rivera was closely examining Wentz at the combine, trade talks with the Colts had already begun, he told The Washington Times on Thursday.  The trade wasn’t agreed upon until March 9 — a day after the Denver Broncos traded for superstar Russell Wilson.

Washington previously made an aggressive offer for Wilson — offering three first-round picks — but the offer was rebuffed by the Seahawks. Rivera told the Times that the Broncos’ acquisition of the trade didn’t speed up the Wentz talks.

“With the Wilson thing, it kinda came as expected more so than anything else,” Rivera said. “We heard in a very direct way that [the Seahawks] were not looking to trade him in the NFC.”

As the negotiations unfolded for Wentz, Rivera said the team looked at the possibility of having Indianapolis eat some of Wentz’s $28 million salary to facilitate the deal. Some teams have shown an inkling to do that in the past, such as when the Broncos agreed to pay half of Case Keenum’s $7 million salary to trade him to Washington. 

But the Commanders ultimately settled on taking on the full contract — a remaining three years, $81.7 million. There’s no guaranteed money left on the contract past this upcoming season. 

“If it was going to be something that could have held this up and created a situation where we could lose him, we went ahead and just decided that was the best thing for us,” Rivera said. 

“One of the things I really do appreciate was in talking to the Snyders and really them just saying, ’Hey, look, if this is what it’s going to take, let’s get it done. We’ll adjust and we’ll be able to handle certain situations.’”