Rivera: Haskins is talented but 'something keeps getting in the way'

Washington Football Team head coach Ron Rivera shed some light on the club's decision to bench and ultimately cut 2019 first-round pick Dwayne Haskins during a roller-coaster 2020 season.

Speaking on "The Colin Cowherd Podcast," Rivera said he found it difficult to harness the young quarterback.

"I tried to come to terms with him," Rivera said. "He's a very talented player. He's got an NFL arm, a legit arm, and there's a part of him that he wants to, but something keeps getting in the way."

"I'm not sure what it was, and that was the hard part, because he puts in the time, and then he doesn't. And you're wondering, 'Where is he? What's he doing?' You see him over here and you go, 'OK,' and then you don't see him. So I think the thing that he needs to do is just prioritize."

Haskins began the 2020 season under center and led Washington to a Week 1 upset win over the Philadelphia Eagles, but then he struggled in losses over the next three games. Rivera made a switch at quarterback, and Haskins was inactive for the following four contests.

"We sat Dwayne down, put the ball in (Kyle Allen's) hands, and what I decided was, I could continue with one guy and forsake 52, or I could put one guy aside and try and develop the other 52. And that's what I decided," Rivera said. "We had an opportunity to see the rest of the team grow because it wasn't coming together for Dwayne."

After sitting for eight straight contests, Haskins returned to the field in a Week 14 win, and then he lost two consecutive starts. He was cut the day after a Week 16 defeat.

Haskins' tenure with Washington came to an end following 16 games, and he signed a futures contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Jan. 21.

"The kid, as I said, he's talented. And if he ever does get it, he's going to make an impact," Rivera said.

Copyright (C) 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.