Momentum appeared to be building toward the Washington Redskins hiring Ron Rivera as their next head coach, but things seem to have stalled.
According to Les Carpenter of The Washington Post, a person with knowledge of the discussions between Rivera and the Redskins says that negotiations are moving slower than expected.
While no further details were provided, it may not be a coincidence that negotiations with Rivera began to drag after more head-coaching vacancies surfaced.
Remember: the Redskins fired Jay Gruden after Week 5, and no one expected interim coach Bill Callahan to remain at the helm in 2020.
So, it has been well known for quite some time that Washington would have an opening at head coach.
The same cannot be said, however, for some of the other positions that opened up on Sunday night and Monday morning.
It's possible that Rivera is keeping his options open, just like it's possible that the Redskins could be looking at other potential candidates, as well.
This doesn't necessarily mean that Rivera won't still ultimately become Washington's next head coach, but it's an interesting development, nonetheless.
Rivera was fired by the Carolina Panthers after going 5-7 through the first 12 games of 2019. He had been the Panthers' head coach since 2011, going 76-63-1 and leading Carolina to three NFC South division titles, four playoff appearances and a trip to the Super Bowl.
Meanwhile, the Redskins went just 3-13 this season and have not made the playoffs since the 2015-16 campaign. Going back even further, Washington has made just five trips to the postseason since 1993.
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