Eli Manning insists Ron Rivera's comments on the Commanders QB situation has been largely misunderstood

Modified Nov 08, 2022 11:49 GMT

Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera recently made headlines for his seemingly critical comments about his quarterback, Carson Wentz. Rivera was asked during a press conference why the Commanders were the only team in the NFC East that has been struggling during the 2022-23 NFL season so far. He simply answered with one word: "Quarterback."

Eli Manning recently appeared on an episode of The Rich Eisen Show, having this to say about the situation:

"I saw the comments and I knew where coach was trying to go and what he was saying in the sense that, 'Hey, these other teams are having success even though they have a quarterback that's been there for a number of years, and they've been able to build a team around the quarterback.' He hasn't had that in Washington, and nothing against Carson Wentz."

Manning continued:

"They just had been there for five games, and years before, they had different quarterbacks that just wasn't 'the guy.' They get him in, and let them kind of learn the system, and then start building by putting pieces around him for him to be successful. So I think that's what he was trying to say, but it didn't come out perfectly, and I could see why there was a little frenzy around it."

As Eli Manning pointed out, Ron Rivera later went on to explain that what he meant by his "quarterback" comment was that their division rivals have had more time to develop their offenses around their quarterbacks. Meanwhile, Wentz has only been with the Commanders for five games since being acquired during the 2022 NFL offseason.

Carson Wentz has struggled for the Commanders during the 2022-23 NFL season

Carson Wentz was acquired by the Washington Commanders via trade with the Indianapolis Colts ahead of the 2022-23 NFL season. He was expected to elevate the team to become playoff contenders, but through five games, it hasn't quite worked out that way so far.

Wentz has recorded just a 1-4 record and has already thrown six interceptions, the third-most by any quarterback so far this season. He only threw seven interceptions during the entire 2021-22 NFL season, so the significant increase this year is an alarming statistic for the organization.

Nonetheless, Washington will look to improve in Week 6 against the 2-3 Chicago Bears.

If you use any of the above quotes, please credit The Rich Eisen Show and H/T Sportskeeda.