One Twitter user, presumably a Washington Commanders fan, learned a valuable lesson. Don’t tag Washington Commanders defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio unprovoked and think he won’t respond.
The fan tagged Del Rio’s handle as well as Commanders head coach Ron Rivera and team president Jason Wright to express he was blaming the trio for the latest contract squabble with Commanders defensive tackle Daron Payne.
“I blame @RiverboatRonHC, @coachdelrio and of course the snake @whoisjasonwright for all this Payne drama. We draft a stud back in 2018 and you all have been playing games the last 2 seasons. Karma gonna bite when he goes within the division. #HTTR,” the user @G_Money_Baggs wrote.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But for starters Wright doesn’t handle player personnel decisions. So it’s unclear why Wright would be at fault for Payne’s contract situation.
Anyways, Del Rio didn’t take the user’s rant too kindly and responded with a pair of tweets. The first simply read, “Bite Deez.”
Certainly, Del Rio’s initial response set Twitter ablaze. His quote retweet received over 2,200 likes and 580 retweets of its own.
After a couple of hours passed by, Del Rio responded to the same initial tweet with a more elaborate defense of Payne.
“BTW, Daron Payne. He is a stud, a great teammate and works his butt off. I love him and he knows it! #Commanders,” Del Rio wrote.
Payne reportedly walked off the field without incident during Tuesday’s OTA practice and did not participate in on-field team drills. Then Payne skipped Thursday’s on-field team drills as well. Payne appears frustrated over the lack of contract talks between the team and his representation.
Payne is set to play the 2022 season on his fifth-year option. It’s apparent he wants a contract extension. But, it’s been reported that the Commanders are not expected to offer the 2018 first-round draft pick a contract extension.
Payne’s future in Washington is uncertain. But it’s quite obvious, Del Rio isn’t going to let someone direct a rant at him (or any other Washington coach, staff or player) without chiming right back at them. His Twitter approach seems to be identical to his days as a player on the field.
