Ron Rivera knows the drill. He’s lived it before, in Carolina.
New owner means, in time, new coach.
The only way to keep that from happening is to win. This year, with Josh Harris buying the Commanders, the team isn’t winning enough to stave off a change. Rivera knows that. He’s been around the block.
He also surely realizes the damage Sunday’s loss to the lowly Giants did to his prospects. A win would have put the Commanders in the mix for the seventh seed. The loss confirmed that the Commanders aren’t ready to contend.
Simms suggested on PFT Live that, if the Commanders didn’t have a short-week game on Thanksgiving, Rivera might have been relieved of his duties on Monday. If the Commanders get manhandled by the Cowboys later today, will it happen tomorrow?
A loss would drop the Commanders to 4-8 and, even worse, 0-5 in the division. Swept by the Eagles. Swept by the Giants, who are 2-0 against Washington and 1-8 against everyone else. And a Week 18 loss to the Cowboys from going 0-6 in the NFC East.
Three years ago, a loss on Thanksgiving ended Matt Patricia’s tenure in Detroit. So it’s definitely a point at which such decisions could be implemented, if the decision has already been made.
If the decision has been made, there’s no reason to not implement it. Especially since it would give offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy a chance to work as a head coach, enhancing his chance of getting the permanent job in Washington or landing a head-coaching job elsewhere.
Harris has not tipped his hand publicly. The feeling in league circles is that major changes are coming for the Commanders. The question is when will they start?
The answer could be as soon as tomorrow, especially if the Commanders end up losing by three or four scores to a Dallas team that, when it wins, usually wins by three or four scores.
