Despite demoting Dwayne Haskins from starter to third-string quarterback in a single week, Washington’s head coach Ron Rivera insists that he hasn’t given up on the Ohio State product.
Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Rivera said that losing the starting job can be beneficial for the 23-year-old quarterback.
“Again, as I said, I have not quit on the kid as far as his development,” said Rivera. “This is an opportunity for him to continue to learn and grow and develop.”
Haskins has been putting disastrous numbers in his first four starts in 2020 while reportedly not working hard enough between games and failing into “poor study and practice habits.” This prompted Rivera to turn to offseason acquisition Kyle Allen as the new starter and install veteran Alex Smith as the backup.
It is believed that in another situation, Washington would ride out the 2020 season with Haskins under center no matter the result. However, with NFC East being wide open for the taking, Rivera decided to make a switch and attempt to make the playoffs with a QB more familiar with his system.
Dwayne Haskins started 11 games for Washington since entering the league as the No.15 pick in 2019. He completed 59.6 percent of his passes in those games while throwing for 2,304 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.
