Commanders’ Rivera not ‘overly concerned’ about Carson Wentz

The Washington Commanders are entering the first season of the Carson Wentz era. Despite doubts about the quarterback’s accuracy, head coach Ron Rivera isn’t “overly concerned” about the 29-year-old.

Rivera acknowledged Wentz has missed some throws, but said the quarterback’s accuracy is “a lot better” than some are claiming.

“I think it’s a lot better than you give him credit for just because of the way things happen in practice,” Rivera said of Wentz. “There’s a lot of little nuances that we see, that we look at, that we get to review. Yeah, there’s some inaccuracies, but it’s nothing that we are overly concerned with. 

“Again, we see what’s going on. We see how things are developing. We see the timing and just the understanding and feel for what’s going on with our concepts. As we continue to grow and work on it, we just feel like we’re going to continue to grow and get better as an offensive unit.”

Washington acquired Wentz and the No. 47 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft from the Indianapolis Colts for the No. 42 pick and two third-round picks. The year prior, Indianapolis acquired Wentz from the Philadelphia Eagles for a first- and third-round draft pick. He spent the first five seasons of his NFL career with the Eagles, who selected him with the No. 2 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft out of North Dakota State. 

Wentz finished the 2021 season with 3,563 passing yards, 27 passing touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 94.6 quarterback rating, completing 62.4% of his passes. In his final season in Philadelphia, Wentz completed just 57.4% of his throws.

Taylor Heinicke was Washington’s primary quarterback in 2021 after Ryan Fitzpatrick suffered a season-ending hip injury in the team’s Week 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Heinicke remains with the club as the lead backup.

The Commanders are coming off a 7-10 campaign, which was good for third in the NFC East. Rivera’s record is 14-19 through two seasons in Washington, which won a division title his first year.