Magic Johnson puts pressure on Ron Rivera, Commanders after embarrassing loss to Bears

LANDOVER — Around the same time Ron Rivera stood on the podium, trying to somehow explain Thursday’s embarrassing 40-20 loss to the Chicago Bears, Washington Commanders limited partner Magic Johnson posted a message on X that managed to take more of a shot at his team in 243 characters than the coach did during his five-minute press conference. 

Rivera relied on all-too-familiar talking points that he resorts to after these kinds of losses, sayings that only add to the frustration of a long-frustrated fanbase. There were missed opportunities, the coach said. The slow starts begin at the top, he added. And during a now 10-day break before their next game, Rivera said the Commanders would evaluate everything to right the ship. 

Johnson? He may not be the Commanders’ majority owner — that would be Josh Harris — but his voice still carries weight. And Johnson’s words spoke volumes in just a short post. 

“Tonight the Commanders played with no intensity or fire,” Johnson wrote on the social media platform. “We didn’t compete in the first half and got down 27-3 heading into halftime. It was too big of a hole to climb out of and that is why we ended up losing 40-20.”

No intensity? No fire? Harsh, but fair. Players weren’t about to disagree after just losing to a team that had dropped 14 straight. The Commanders (2-3) were humiliated once again in a big game, this time by the worst team in the league. 

Washington was embarrassed in front of a sellout crowd, which was so angry at the home team that fans showered players and coaches with boos heading into the locker room for halftime rather than go get concessions. 

By calling out the Commanders, Johnson’s post applied pressure in a way that Rivera wouldn’t do publicly. 

“Yeah, definitely, we came out flat,” defensive end Montez Sweat said. “(It’s like) we got this memo that we liked to get punched in the mouth first and then respond — we’ve got to stop doing that.” 

Johnson’s message, in some ways, strayed away from the declaration he made at Harris’ introductory press conference in July. Over the summer, the NBA legend vowed that ownership wouldn’t cause distractions in the way that Washington’s previous ownership had. “We want to make it easy for them,” Johnson said. Ripping the Commanders’ effort — however well deserved — certainly appears to go against that. 

Tonight the Commanders played with no intensity or fire. We didn’t compete in the first half and got down 27-3 heading into halftime. It was too big of a hole to climb out of and that is why we ended up losing 40-20.

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) October 6, 2023

But perhaps Johnson’s post should be interpreted not as a message to players — but to coaches. After all, the Commanders’ slow starts have been a hallmark of Rivera’s four-year tenure with the Commanders. The coach hasn’t had a winning record through five games in any of those years. Defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio, who has been with Rivera in the same span, also oversees a unit where slow starts have become an annual occurrence. 

It’s on the coaches to instill that fire — and so far, that hasn’t translated to the field. In Thursday’s game, Bears quarterback Justin Fields threw for 282 yards — 230 of those went to star wide receiver D.J. Moore.

Moore played a big part in helping Chicago get out to a 17-0 lead — he burned cornerback Benjamin St-Juste for a 58-yard gain on the Bears’ opening drive and caught the team’s first two touchdowns — but the problems go well beyond the secondary. The Bears regularly ripped off six-, seven-yard gains as they rushed for 178 yards on 32 attempts. Washington’s defense allowed seven plays of at least 20 yards. 

In the past four games, the Commanders have given up 40, 34, 37 and 33 points respectively.  That’s the opposite of starting fast.

“It starts at the top,” Rivera said. “We’ve got to be better and that part is on me. Then we got to make sure we’re put in a position to be successful.” 

Rivera said he wouldn’t disclose what changes he thought were necessary, at least until he had an opportunity to review the film of the loss. But even then, Rivera has often avoided making wholesale changes in the middle of the season — especially when it comes to coaching. The most notable move Washington’s coaches made last year was when the team benched high-priced cornerback William Jackson III, coincidentally in a Week 5 loss, that fueled a defensive turnaround. 

Against the Bears, Rivera did make a significant personnel change: He benched first-round rookie cornerback Emmanuel Forbes for veteran Danny Johnson. But that won’t likely satisfy a fanbase that has grown increasingly tired of Del Rio (and Rivera, for that matter). 

Also notable, Forbes’ benching in the fourth quarter didn’t lead to a dramatic improvement from the defense. Chicago still put the game away with a 56-yard touchdown to Moore in the final four minutes. The score ballooned the Bears’ lead to 37-20. 

Rivera wasn’t specifically asked about Del Rio’s job in Thursday’s press conference. The coach has shown a willingness to shake up his staff before, but such transactions normally come in the offseason. He waited until after last season, for instance, to part with Scott Turner and hire Eric Bieniemy to be Washington’s new offensive coordinator. The last time Rivera made an in-season shakeup to his staff was when he was still in Carolina in 2018 when he fired two assistants and took over defensive play-calling duties from coordinator Eric Washington. 

Asked about the team’s preparation, players didn’t criticize coaching and said they were well prepared. Defensive end Chase Young even defended Del Rio by name, telling reporters that the coordinator “made good calls” against the Bears. “We just got to start fast,” Young said. 

That doesn’t erase the frustration that comes with a loss like this.  Star wide receiver Terry McLaurin said Thursday’s beatdown was “definitely up there” among the worst defeats he’s suffered throughout his five-year career. 

Washington’s offense contributed to the slow start. Quarterback Sam Howell had just 71 yards at halftime with an interception (by former Washington corner Greg Stroman, no less). The Commanders were so behind at the half that Bieniemy didn’t call a single designed run over the final two quarters. Howell finished with a career-high 51 attempts and 388 yards. 

“Not really,” McLaurin said when asked if he was shocked by the defeat. “When you don’t get off to a fast start and a team that’s hungry like that … that’s what can happen.” 

McLaurin said Johnson’s assessment was “pretty fair.” The wide receiver added that while he didn’t think the Commanders were a “lazy bunch,” the team’s quality of play mattered more. And that wasn’t a good showing, he said.

The biggest question after a game like Thursday, however, is how Washington’s new ownership will react. Despite Johnson’s strong wording, Harris has tended to be patient with coaches in his other sports franchises. The owner of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils, the billionaire has only made two in-season coaching changes — both coming on the hockey side. 

But Harris and Johnson were at the game Thursday. They once again saw fans leave early for the exits, just as they did last month in a blowout 37-3 loss to the Buffalo Bills. The Commanders have suffered one-sided defeats in back-to-back home games.

Before Thursday’s kickoff, Johnson appeared on Amazon’s pre-game broadcast and told the streaming network that the Commanders were still figuring out “who we are” as a team. The five-time NBA champion also said that he told players that they had the chance to “write their own script” this season, imparting the values that are necessary to win. 

“We can’t finger point,” Johnson said. “That’s the main thing.” 

So naturally, at the end of the game, Johnson’s fingers pointed plenty.