Ron Rivera: ‘I’ve got a lot to prove’ after meeting Josh Harris, entering new season

ASHBURN — Ron Rivera has said that when the day came to sit down with the Washington Commanders’ new owner, he planned to be concise and “very specific” about his vision for the team’s direction.

But when the coach finally got to meet with Josh Harris recently, the conversation, it turned out, was as much an opportunity for Harris to outline his expectations as it was for Rivera to share his vision for the franchise. Harris, the coach said, was forthcoming in talking about what he expected in terms of development, culture and ultimately, winning. 

Rivera understood the message. 

“I’ve got a lot to prove,” Rivera said. 

As the Commanders begin training camp Wednesday, Rivera is embracing what figures to be a must-win year. Entering his fourth season at the helm of Washington, Rivera has a new boss he has to impress — and is coming off back-to-back seasons in which the Commanders have missed the playoffs. 

A year ago, Rivera said it wasn’t “fair” to classify the coming season as playoffs or bust. And while he avoided that phrasing this time around, the coach acknowledged the playoff drought is a big factor in why he’s got a lot to prove. 

“We’ve been too close,” Rivera said. “For everything that we’ve done and for what we’ve had and how we’ve competed, we’ve been too close the last couple of years. We get into a really good run. It’s time now to sustain it and just proving that these are the guys, these are the coaches, that I’m the right guy to help this organization continue to go forward.”

Rivera, who also underwent an ownership change in his last job with Carolina, is right the Commanders have been close to securing a playoff spot over the last two years. Last season, Washington finished 8-8-1 — narrowly missing out on the seventh seed that went to the 9-8 Seattle Seahawks. In 2021, Washington lost four out of its last five — a disappointing end given that the team went on a four-game winning streak beforehand. 

Rivera is excited that the drawn-out process of selling the team is finally over, and he’s excited about the arrival of Harris.

Under former owner Dan Snyder, Rivera had become a spokesman-like figure for the organization.

He was asked often about Snyder’s scandals and felt, at times, more like a “manager” than a football coach. 

Rivera said Tuesday that “you can already feel the impact” of the new ownership. As veterans reported for camp Tuesday, Rivera said a number of them remarked on the newly installed bleachers for fans to watch practice. And for Saturday’s session, according to a team official, the Commanders have already distributed 10,000 tickets. 

Harris, too, is scheduled to attend Wednesday’s practice — the team’s first under the new regime. There, Harris will get his first up-close look at how Rivera and his staff interact with players and the flow of the session. 

During his introductory press conference, Harris said he was looking forward to working with Rivera. In his remarks, Harris also uttered the word “culture” six times in explaining his vision for the Commanders. That obviously caught Rivera’s attention, given the coach’s affinity for the topic. 

In his meeting with Harris, Rivera said he came away with the impression that he and ownership were “on the same page.” Both parties, the coach said, believe a positive culture populated with the right people is necessary for success.

Rivera also mentioned that he left the meeting with the belief that Harris and his group were committed to providing the Commanders “the tools” needed to win. 

Over the last few months, several football-related items such as contract extensions and staff changes were put on hold as Washington’s sale was being finalized. With Harris now in charge, Rivera said he’s had an opportunity to go over some of those topics, whereas others — such as finalizing Travelle Wharton’s promotion to offensive line coach and other staff tweaks — have yet to be discussed. 

But the conversations will continue, Rivera said.

“The thing that I really appreciated was having that conversation and just hearing their commitment to trying to do the best they can to bring back to this area a sense of pride in this organization,” Rivera said.