Washington Football Team head coach Ron Rivera benched quarterback Dwayne Haskins this week in a move that he said was not an “indictment” of the 2019 first-round pick.
It was hardly a rousing show of support, however, and the fact that Rivera wasn’t in Washington when Haskins was drafted would lead many people to think Haskins’ window with the team is closed. Rivera said that isn’t the case on Friday.
Rivera said “by no means have I given up on” Haskins, who is now the No. 3 quarterback with Alex Smith moving up to backup duty. Rivera said he wants Haskins to learn from Kyle Allen, who has more experience in the offensive system after playing for Rivera and offensive coordinator Scott Turner in Carolina.
“A big part of it is watching and studying,” Rivera said, via John Keim of ESPN.com. “Like today, he was back there behind the quarterback watching the reps, looking downfield. Just being involved, staying connected, which is important. . . . I’ve told you guys the only reason I’m doing what I’m doing is because of the circumstances and the situation we’re in right now.”
The situation Washington’s in is an NFC East where no team has won two games through the first four weeks of the season. Three of the next four games on the Football Team’s schedule are divisional matchups and Rivera said that factored into his decision to make the quarterback change at this point.