The Washington Commanders have parted ways with Ron Rivera as their head coach after a 4-13 season.
"I want to thank Ron and his wife Stephanie for all they did for the Commanders and DMV community, especially during the ownership transition," **Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris said in a statement.** "Ron helped navigate this organization through some challenging times. He is a good man and thoughtful leader who has positively contributed to this organization and the NFL. I wish the Rivera family nothing but the best moving forward."
Rivera, who first joined the franchise after the 2019 season, was 26-40-1 leading the Commanders. In his first season as head coach, he led the team to their first NFC East title since 2015, despite battling cancer. Rivera did not miss a single game during the 2020 season while receiving treatment, and the team had a four-game winning streak from Week 11-14 to get themselves in playoff contention.
Following the 2020 season, Rivera was named the NFC Coach of the Year by NFL 101 Awards.
Though the Commanders only made the postseason one time during Rivera's tenure, he guided them to a handful of impressive wins. In 2020, they upset the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers on the road, which jumpstarted their push for the division title. The following year, they came out of the bye week to take down Tom Brady and the 2020 Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which started another four-game win streak.
And in 2022, the Commanders traveled to Lincoln Financial Field and took down the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles, who went on to appear in the Super Bowl and considered by many to be the best team in the league at the time, to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Last February, Rivera received the NFL's Salute to Service award for his efforts to honor and support military communities. USAA, the sponsor of the award, provided a $25,000 donation to each military branch's official aid society in Rivera's name. The NFL sent a matching donation to the charity of Rivera's choice.
But after starting the 2023 season 2-0, the Commanders slid to their eighth consecutive non-winning season. They closed things out with eight straight losses -- the longest streak in the NFL -- and struggled to put together competitive performances on both sides of the ball. As a result, Managing Partner Josh Harris decided that change was needed.
The Commanders enter the offseason with plenty of tools to rebuild their roster. They have nine draft picks, one of them being No. 2 overall, and plenty of estimated cap space to bring in new talent or re-sign pending free agents. The search for the right head coach to lead that effort will begin immediately.
