Is Year 3 a Must-Win Season for Washington Coach Ron Rivera?

After having losing seasons in his first two years as the Washington Commanders head coach, former Cal linebacker Ron Rivera knows there is pressure to show significant improvement in 2022. The acquisition of quarterback Carson Wentz adds to the pressure to win in Year 3. And if the Commanders’ record next season if similar to the 7-9 record in 2020 or the 7-10 record in 2021, Rivera’s job might be in jeopardy.

Rivera is aware of the pressure to win in 2022.

"I do feel it," Rivera said, according to an ESPN report. "This is the year that says, 'We're going to ascend.' And we should be ascending."

There is precedent for a Rivera-coached team making major improvement in Year 3.

The Carolina Panthers went 6-10 and 7-9 in their first two seasons under Rivera in 2011 and 2012, but they went 12-4 in the third year, and his fifth season as the Panthers’ head coach, Carolina went 15-1 in the regular season and got to the Super Bowl.

Washington got to the playoffs in Rivera’s first season despite having a losing record while Rivera was undergoing treatment for cancer. The team won five of its final seven games to reach the postseason.

"What happened my first year was an anomaly," Rivera said, according to ESPN. "I don't get too caught up in that. My second year was kind of on par, maybe a step back, because even though I felt we were immature, I was hopeful we could get it straightened up and we could work it and go in the right direction."

Rivera is entering the third year of a five-year contract that pays him about $7 million a year, which is the 10th highest salary among NFL coaches. But NFL teams often fire coaches with years remaining on their contract.

Unless there are extenuating circumstances, team officials typically give head coaches three years to prove they can produce a winner. But the third year is pivotal.

"I've said from the day they hired Ron I thought it was a very good hire and I think that will prove to be the case at the end," former Philadelphia Eagles president Joe Banner said, according to ESPN. "For me, Year 3, if you're a [general manager] or head coach, that's when, if you've been doing things right, it will start to show up. This is the test. This is the year those guys, and Ron in particular, have to prove the foundation they've been laying is now starting to show on the field and starting to win a lot more games."

Rivera agreed, saying this back in January, according to the Washington Post: “The third season is when you take another step.”

The 60-year-old Rivera seems to be healthy again. He did not contract COVID-19 despite being immunocompromised as a result of his battle with cancer.

Rivera was a first-team All-America linebacker in 1983, his final season at Cal, when he recorded 26.5 tackles for loss, including 13 sacks. He recorded 47.5 tackles for loss over his Cal career.

Cover photo of Ron Rivera with Carson Wentz is by John McCreary, USA TODAY Sports

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