ASHBURN — Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera said Tuesday he closely reviewed the First Amendment before making the decision to fine defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio, telling reporters that he went forward with the punishment because of how the assistant’s comments “impacted the football team.”
Speaking before practice, Rivera called Del Rio’s comments a “distraction.”
Rivera fined his coordinator $100,000 last week after Del Rio referred to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol as a “dust-up” in an attempt to defend a tweet comparing the attack to the racial justice protests that took place in the wake of George Floyd’s murder.