Washington Football Team head coach Ron Rivera says he is looking for the “short-term glory” by switching starting quarterbacks. The team benched Dwayne Haskins after four games this season in favor of Kyle Allen ahead of their Week 5 game against the Los Angeles Rams.
That’s thanks in large to the subpar play of the entire NFC East. For the first three weeks, Washington remained in first place of the putrid division despite being 1-2. While they’re in second place now, they’re only behind the first-place Philadelphia Eagles, who have a 1-2-1 record.
Washington beat the Eagles in Week 1, 27-17 with Haskins as quarterback. But, Haskins hasn’t lit up the field in any game. His struggles show he needs more seasoning. Thus, with the division still in reach, Rivera decided to go for the short-term answer.
Allen has played under Rivera and offensive coordinator Scott Turner the previous two seasons with the Carolina Panthers. His familiarity is why Washington traded a fifth-round pick for him this off-season.
Last season, he started 12 games for the Panthers with Turner in large calling plays. He threw for 3,322 yards, 17 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He has a better understanding of the system compared to Haskins. So does veteran Alex Smith, who was promoted to backup quarterback.
As a result, Haskins is being sat and bumped down to No. 3 on the depth chart. Rivera said a lot in his explanation to why the decision was made. He added he wished Haskins had the OTAs and preseason to get more acquainted with offensive scheme.
Haskins didn’t show the growth Rivera was looking for through the first four games. That’s despite Haskins having his best career game (314 yards, 70% completion percentage) in last week’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
Rivera added if there was a team that was 4-0 or 3-1 in the standings, he might have stuck with Haskins. Instead, he feels Haskins “needs more time” and right now with the division up for grabs, Washington has to keep “one eye” on winning the division.
