Washington Commanders' Ron Rivera: Team sticking with Taylor Heinicke ahead of 49ers' game

The influx of news following quarterback Taylor Heinicke and the Washington Commanders’ brutal loss to the New York Giants on Sunday night has been flowing in at a steady pace ever since Terry McLaurin, Washington’s endlessly talented wide receiver, strongly believed his position at the line was in accordance with the referee.

Now, presumably in the spirit of taking the microphone from his star wide receiver, head coach Ron Rivera has stepped forward to announce that Heinicke will still be “the guy” heading into the Commanders’ Week 16 matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.

While some might feel like this is a reward for a wholehearted effort against the Giants — one substantially crushed by a non-call in the end zone — others might feel like this is cruel and unusual punishment for Heinicke to be tossed into the lion’s den that is the 2022 San Francisco 49ers defense.

Ron Rivera not straying from Taylor Heinicke as team’s starting QB, for now

Let’s get to the official quote from coach Rivera before we dig any deeper.

Rivera said no QB change. "Stick with Taylor and what we're trying to establish… It is something to be quite frank, I do have to think about at some point. But if we get back on track and play the way we've played and do the things we've done, then we'll stick where we are."
— John Keim (@john_keim) December 19, 2022

First off, the mere idea of any NFL head coach saying anything along the lines of, “I do have to think about at some point,” in regard to the position of starting quarterback is somewhat startling.

Perhaps it’s something a head coach casually says about the long snapper or the condition of the backup mascot, but the starting quarterback? Not exactly a finely tailored line of thinking from Riverboat Ron.

The entire quote went a very circular and predictable route and, of course, a vitally safe one too.

Rivera is a veteran of the craft and expertly covered all the bases, including zero mention of the now-healthy Carson Wentz — who would likely rather be anywhere else on the planet than in the grasps of Nick Bosa and Co. — as a possibility to start against the 49ers.

Nonetheless, the absence of mentioning Wentz at all goes to show just how little confidence — or any kind of clue — the Washington Commanders franchise has about the present and future tense as it pertains to the position of starting quarterback.

The aforementioned statement of Rivera thinking about the true cemented starting QB “at some point” serves as a chilling, stark reality of life as a Washington football fan.