#ron-rivera

#ron-rivera

When Rivera entered the draft war room in 2023, which would be his last at the helm, he had one prospect on his mind. There was no deviating from the Commanders, even when one of the blue-chip prospects fell into their lap. The head coach was going to take Emmanuel Forbes Jr., and nothing would get in his way. New England saw this coming a mile away. Bill Belichick traded down, safe in the knowledge that he could still get his hands on Christian Gonzalez.

Cal football general manager Ron Rivera may not be done with the NFL after all. The former coach of the Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders interviewed recently with the Arizona Cardinals for their vacant coaching position, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic. Rivera, 64, took over the Golden Bears' football program less than year ago, aiming to use his NFL experience to help his alma mater fast-forward into the new world of college football, complete with Name, Image and Likeness,

Rivera spent draft picks and money on free agents to solve his quarterback conundrum. None of those worked, and there was also an ill-advised trade to acquire Carson Wentz to factor in. This reeked of desperation at the time, and it went just as badly as fans expected. Wentz struggled to build momentum, and injuries didn't help. He lasted just one season in Washington before they cut the cord.