Ron Rivera on Commanders' Loss to Bears: 'It Starts at the Top... That's on Me'

Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera is shouldering the blame for his team's 40-20 loss to the Chicago Bears on Thursday night.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Rivera said the lackluster performance "starts at the top" and "that's on me."

A once-promising start to the season in Washington has quickly turned into a team looking for answers on both sides of the ball.

The offense tied a season-high with 388 yards against the Bears, but it also committed two turnovers. It was the third time in five games they have turned the ball over at least two times.

Washington's defense has been one of the most disappointing units in the NFL through five weeks. This group has allowed at least 386 yards in four consecutive games, including a season-high 451 to the Bears.

Chicago hadn't scored 40 points in a game since Week 16 of the 2020 season against a Jacksonville Jaguars team that finished 1-15.

The Commanders finished third in yards allowed per game (304.6) and seventh in points allowed per game (20.2) last season. They only allowed one team to score more than 30 points once in 17 games.

Opposing teams have scored at least 33 points in each of the past four games against the Commanders.

Rivera is in his fourth season as Washington's head coach. He led the team to an NFC East title in his first year, but failed to post a winning record in each of the past three seasons.

The Commanders are currently in third place in the NFC East with a 2-3 record. They will look to get back to .500 in Week 6 when they play the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.