Yahoo News Ron Rivera backing QB Dwayne Haskins after another rough outing for Washington
Dwayne Haskins had a rough outing on Sunday afternoon in Cleveland.
The Washington Football Team quarterback threw three interceptions and had two fumbles in their 34-20 loss to the Browns, a victory that gave the Browns a winning record for the first time since 2014.
Haskins finished the day having thrown 21-of-37 for 224 yards and two touchdowns in the loss, Washington’s second straight.
Despite the struggles, Ron Rivera says he isn’t contemplating a change.
"I just got done talking to Dwayne and told him, ‘I'm behind you. I'm going to stick with you, so you go out and play,’” Rivera said, via ESPN.
‘I am going to take my lumps with Dwayne right now’
Haskins has struggled this season.
The 23-year-old, who Washington took with the No. 15 overall draft pick in 2019, had the worst quarterback rating among any player in the league at 28.6 headed into Sunday and the 27th-worst total yards with just 401. His overall completion percentage, at 56.3 percent, is the worst in the league, too.
Though it’s not ideal, Rivera knows it’s best to keep Haskins in the starting lineup for the time being. The best way for him to improve — just like Cam Newton did with Rivera in Carolina — is to play.
“The truth of the matter is how is [Haskins] going to learn?" Rivera said, via ESPN. "Is he going to learn while taking the [scout] team snaps? No. The only way we are going to find out where Dwayne is and what he can do is by putting him back out on the football field and let him get exposed. That is how he grows.
“That is what we did with Cam Newton and look where he is today. Cam Newton was a league MVP because we trusted him and we took our lumps with him. I am going to take my lumps with Dwayne right now."
At this point, Haskins is about Rivera’s only option at QB — unless he opts to go with backup Kyle Allen, whose only starts in the league came when he filled in for an injured Newton last year with the Panthers. Alex Smith is still on the injured reserve list, too, in the midst of his miraculous comeback.
Still, Haskins knows he has to get better, no matter how much support Rivera is giving him.
“In spite of the bad I thought I had some good stuff to work on and improve off of,” Haskins said, via ESPN. “Coach Rivera and I are very close and I don’t want to ever just get comfortable thinking I’m his guy or he believes in me. That doesn’t matter if you’re not producing on the field.
“I’m definitely appreciative of that and how he feels of me.”
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