Washington Commanders' Ron Rivera on Defending Tyreek Hill: 'Stay Deep!'
The Washington Commanders face the high-octane offense of the Miami Dolphins as they look to bounce back after their 45-10 humbling at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys.
With Ron Rivera taking over the defensive play-calling after Jack Del Rio was fired, his attention in game planning is focused on one weapon at Tua Tagovailoa's disposal - Tyreek Hill.
The speedy receiver already has 1,324 yards and 10 touchdowns on the season as he has continued his blistering form from last year.
So, how does Rivera plan on stopping him?
“Stay deep," Rivera said. "I mean, you have to make sure there's somebody over the top of him. I think it also tells you that you’ve also got to make sure that you are playing to your leverage. You have to understand where your safety help is, where the linebacker help is, or where the corner’s helping if he's inside. I mean, you have to know those things going in if you're the one that's over the top of him or inside of him, or outside of him.”
So far this season, Hill has gotten over 100 receiving yards and/or a touchdown in every game bar two, which makes him a serious threat, but there's another layer to why Hill is so dangerous - he opens things up for others.
Commanders head coach Ron Rivera knows the dangers that Tyreek Hill presents.
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With coverage leaning towards Hill to stop him from wrecking the game, others like Jaylen Waddle can then have their moment in the sun, not to mention running backs in Raheem Mostert (158 receiving yards, 2TDs) and De'Von Achane (71 receiving yards, 2 TDs) who can also get loose.
For Rivera, he knows the dangers of having too much attention on Hill.
“Oh, it opens it up for everybody else," Rivera said. "I mean, if you spend too much time on one guy, the other guys have to step up. It all depends on what your philosophy is for that play. We're not going to let him beat us on this coverage call, so those other guys are the guys that the quarterback will have a better chance to get the ball to because you've spent so much time on that individual.”
The Commanders will have their hands full with this Miami offense, and given that Washington has the 32nd-ranked defense for points allowed per game (29.2) and the Dolphins have the second-best offense in the NFL (30.8 points per game), it could be a long day for Washington's secondary.
There has been a lot of change this week for the Commanders, and picking themselves up off the canvas looks to be a tall order, but with their backs against the wall and their season in freefall, the Dolphins must beware the wounded animal.
