Commanders Rivera: 'Brilliantly Smart' Wentz Reminds of Top 10 All-Time QB
Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera is hoping he and quarterback Carson Wentz can do something Philip Rivers never did: Win a Super Bowl.
They are coming together to start building a back-to-back seven-win team into a contender. However, there are things about Wentz that remind Rivera of the former San Diego Chargers quarterback from his days with the franchise from 2007-2010.
“[Wentz] is brilliantly smart. He came in, got in his book and got to work,” Rivera told The MMQB’s Albert Breer. “He’s just one of those guys that works at it. And in some respects, it was similar to when I was in San Diego and I saw the way Philip Rivers was, how smart Philip was. And this guy is smart. Watching Carson, it’s like, ‘This guy’s got it,’ and he really did remind me of Philip to a degree. … It was really pleasing to see.”
Rivers is the NFL's sixth-leading passer in league history, and by season's end he'll be seventh at worst, depending on the stats Matt Ryan puts up with the Indianapolis Colts.
Meanwhile, Wentz is only 113th in league history, and 17th among active quarterbacks.
Six seasons into his NFL career, the Wentz-Rivers comparisons mean more when talking about work ethic, and ability, and come from someone who worked around both. But there are also statistical parallels between the two.
Through six seasons, the two quarterbacks are half of one percent apart in completion percentage, both above 90 in QBR and while Rivers won 46 games in those years, Wentz has won 44.
Big difference: Wentz has also lost 40, while Rivers lost just 18.
This discrepancy speaks to Rivers' early team success but is also influenced by the fact he began his career playing behind future Hall-of-Famer Drew Brees.
Wentz, on the other hand, was expected to be a franchise savior from his first day in the league.
But those days are behind him. These days, he's not expected to save the Washington Commanders, no they're still supposed to be a defensive team, but is only looked at as an upgrade at the quarterback position from 2021.
That's a task that should prove easier to achieve.
“The most impressive thing is just day-to-day, the way he’s built relationships with his teammates, and he’s consistently making plays,” Washington offensive coordinator Scott Turner said of Wentz. “That’s where you see it, making throw after throw, communicating with the guys, and not just the receivers or O-linemen, even bulls---ing with the defensive guys in the building. He’s clearly one of the guys and he knows exactly what we’re trying to get done.”
The Washington Commanders have their mission, and the quarterback knows what it is, and his role in achieving it.
He may not have big shoes to fill stepping into this latest starting role, but he has a big task ahead of him to win over a bruised and burned fan base.
Playing like Philip Rivers would bring some ups and downs, but it would be a heck of a lot of fun to watch Washington football again.
Something we haven't been able to say for far too long.
