Commanders' Rivera 'comfortable' about job status

Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera doesn't appear to be worried about his job status despite having yet to post a winning season with the team.

"I understand the situation and circumstances, but I'm not going to waver on anything," Rivera said Friday, according to Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post. "I'll stick to what I talked about in the spring and that was the growth and development of the quarterback and the offensive unit."

The 61-year-old added, "I'm confident and comfortable in who I am and what I do. Shit, I've been through enough. The last three years have not been easy. ... At the end of the day, the questions that need to be asked are: Is the culture better and have we found a quarterback?"

Rivera - a two-time Coach of the Year with the Carolina Panthers in 2013 and 2015 - has posted a 26-33-1 record since being named Washington's head coach in 2020. The Commanders, who were sold to a Josh Harris-led ownership group during the offseason, are 4-6 in 2023.

Quarterback play has been the franchise's biggest issue in recent years, as Washington has lacked consistency at football's most important position. The team turned to Sam Howell - a fifth-round pick in 2022 - this season and hired a new offensive coordinator in Eric Bieniemy. Howell currently leads the league in pass completions and yards, but the Commanders' offense ranks 17th in points per game.

Meanwhile, Washington's defense - a top-10 unit last season - is one of the NFL's worst units in 2023.

"My big disappointment has been we haven't played as well on defense that we've needed to," Rivera said. "Does that make my job security shaky? It could. I mean, I have no idea what Mr. Harris is going to do. So all I can do is just focus on each game each week."

Washington hosts the New York Giants in Week 11.

The Commanders were the NFL's biggest sellers at October's trade deadline. New ownership and disappointing results could lead to sideline changes after the season, but Rivera is only focused on what he can control.

"This is the nature of the game. I get it. So, if it happens, it happens. If I stay, I stay," he said. "Until then, I will just continue to work. I know what my goals are, I know what my vision is."

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