Washington coach Ron Rivera has been diagnosed with cancer but plans to continue coaching, he told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Thursday night.
Rivera told Schefter that he was diagnosed with lymphoma. The team later said he had squamous cell carcinoma of the neck. Rivera said the cancer is in its early stages and is considered “highly treated and cured.”
Rivera told his players at a team meeting Thursday night. From now on, he said, nothing changes with his job.
“I plan to go on coaching,” he told Schefter. “Doctors also encouraged me to do it. They said, ‘If you feel strong, do it. Do not slow down, do your physical activities.’ But everyone tells me by week three or four, you’ll start feeling it. “
According to the Mayo Clinic, squamous cell carcinoma is a form of skin cancer. It is not normally life-threatening but can spread through the body and cause serious complications.
Rivera said he has a Plan B in place, although he is not yet ready to share more information. Jack Def Rio, defensive coordinator, has been a head coach for two teams – Jacksonville (2003-11) and Oakland (2015-17). No one else on the staff has head training experience in the NFL.
Rivera, 58, has consulted with a number of doctors and specialists and is setting up a treatment plan with the team and an outside specialist.
Rivera said he found a lump on his neck in early July, and when it did not go away after a few weeks, he consulted a doctor. He said he was told about the cancer two weeks ago.
“I was dumb,” he said. “But I was angry because I feel like I’m in the best health I’ve ever been.”
Rivera led Washington through a tumultuous offseason that raised a number of off-field issues, ranging from dealing with the pandemic to a name change to a report accusing him of sexual harassment in the organization.
But lately, Rivera has been upbeat because he could focus on football with the start of practice. The team began working in full pads on Tuesday, and Rivera revealed that he was his normal self during Zoom interview sessions with the media.
Among other things, Rivera clearly had other things on her mind.
“I was just angry,” he told Schefter. “The thing I find out is how many people have gone through this. Outpatient therapy, proton therapy.”
Rivera said he gathered the players in a large circle after their evening meeting so he could tell them in person.
“Some were dumbfounded. A bunch came up and wanted me,” Rivera said. “I said, ‘I’m going to get a little crisper, so don’t piss me off.’
Players have taken to Rivera, hired by owner Dan Snyder after the 2019 season.
“He’s definitely a player’s coach,” defensive end Ryan Anderson said earlier in the day. ‘So far I love him. I trust him. I would run through a wall in front of him. ‘
Rivera was buoyed by the support he said he received from the organization and health care specialists.
“I’m going through the right treatment,” he said. “This will be fine.”
Washington posted a tweet in support of Rivera on Thursday.
We love you, @RiverboatRonHC. We’re all with you, Stephanie, Christopher, and Courtney.
– Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) 21 August 2020
Rivera has been active with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network since his brother, Mickey, was diagnosed with the disease. He died two years later in 2015, but he remained a source of inspiration for Rivera, who missed a few days in training camp to attend the funeral.
“The thing I shared with the players is that my brother Mickey made a total commitment,” Rivera said at the time. “I told the players how making a total effort is so important.”
A year after his brother’s death, he shared what he had learned from experience.
“That does not matter what my situation and circumstances were, as long as I have my health, I’m OK,” Rivera said. “That’s the biggest thing I learned from it.”
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