NFL Rumors: Ron Rivera May Not Be Fired on Birthday but Commanders Eye Changes

The Washington Commanders are reportedly expected to make significant organizational changes "early next week" following a nightmarish season that has them at 4-12 entering Sunday's regular-season finale against the Dallas Cowboys.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Commanders may not fire head coach Ron Rivera on Sunday since it is his 62nd birthday, but sweeping changes are likely to be made shortly thereafter.

Rivera's firing has long been expected, as the Commanders will miss the playoffs for a third consecutive season and have never posted a winning record during Rivera's four-year tenure as head coach.

Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported Saturday that Rivera and his staff are "well aware" that they are likely to be fired, and Commanders owner Josh Harris essentially began his search for a new head coach and general manager "a few weeks back." That suggests current GM Martin Mayhew is expected to be fired as well.

Russini added that the Commanders are "keeping an eye" on the New England Patriots' situation, meaning they may have interest in hiring Bill Belichick if he becomes available.

Harris purchased the Commanders for over $6 billion last year, and while he gave Rivera the opportunity to establish himself as the head coach moving forward, the team regressed significantly this season after going 8-8-1 in 2022.

Per Schefter, Harris intends to launch an "exhaustive and comprehensive" search for his next head coach, and he is "not expected to spare any expense" when it comes time to make a hiring.

There was hope that the Commanders would take a big step forward offensively in 2023 with the hiring of offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and the installation of Sam Howell at quarterback.

Howell showed that he deserves to be in the league for a long time to come, but he may not have done enough to save his starting job, as he has thrown 20 touchdown passes to 19 interceptions entering Week 18.

One factor that could push Howell out the door or back into a backup role is the fact that the Commanders will clinch the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft is they lose to Dallas on Sunday as expected.

That would give Washington the ability to select one of the top quarterbacks in the draft, such as USC's Caleb Williams, North Carolina's Drake Maye or LSU's Jayden Daniels, and that could make the Commanders' head coaching job a highly attractive one, according to Schefter.

Given the success Harris has enjoyed as owner of the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers and NHL's New Jersey Devils, prospective head coaching candidates can take solace in knowing that the Commanders seem to have a competent and stable owner.

That wasn't necessarily the case for many years before Harris' arrival, as previous owner Dan Snyder was a highly controversial figure who was fined and suspended by the NFL after an investigation determined he fostered a toxic workplace environment.

Harris replacing Snyder should give the Commanders the ability to pursue and potentially hire the candidate of their choosing, which would be a huge boost for a team that has made the playoffs only once in the past eight seasons and hasn't won a playoff game since the 2005 season.

While it is unclear what the future holds for Rivera if he is fired as expected, perhaps becoming a defensive coordinator elsewhere could be of interest to him.

Speaking to reporters this week (h/t Bryan Manning of USA Today's Commanders Wire), Rivera said he has enjoyed taking on DC responsibilities in recent weeks since the firing of Jack Del Rio.

Rivera noted that he "managed for about three and a half years" in Washington, but has gotten to coach for the past five weeks, calling it "a thrill."