Commanders’ Ron Rivera Emotionally Invokes Late Mother After Win

The Washington coach fought back tears during the team’s locker room celebration after its win over the Eagles.

The Commanders beat the last undefeated team, the Eagles, 32–21 on Monday night, causing Washington coach Ron Rivera to become overwhelmed by emotions in the locker room after the game.

His mood wasn’t just prompted by the Commanders’ monumental win, but also from grief. Rivera is still mourning the loss of his mother, Dolores, who died on Oct. 31.

As the 60-year-old choked up while celebrating with his team, he pointed to the sky and finally shared a few words before leaving the locker room.

”My mother would have been proud,” Rivera said as he held back tears.

Ron Rivera recently lost his mother and was emotional in the locker room after last night’s win over the Eagles ❤️

(via @Commanders)pic.twitter.com/ggUGNPlwGU

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) November 15, 2022

Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin comforted his coach and then took over the postgame locker room speech when Rivera left.

“You can see how much that means to him,” McLaurin said. “It means a lot to everyone in this locker room.”

McLaurin hyped the team up while Commanders players cheered and celebrated.

With the win, the Commanders improve to 5–5 on the season. They face the Texans in Houston (1-7-1) on Sunday.

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