Ron Rivera made a bold call at the end of his Washington Football Team’s victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday that paid off.
Rivera’s squad was leading 23-19 and had the ball inside the five. Antonio Gibson rushed on 3rd-and-goal to the 1. At that point, most coaches probably would have taken the easy field goal to go up 26-19 and force the Bucs to score a touchdown with under 30 seconds left to tie the game.
Not Rivera.
Rivera decided to go for it. Washington gave a handoff to Gibson, who scored a 1-yard touchdown on 4th-and-goal to seal the game.
That made it 29-19. Washington then kneeled on the ball for their extra point rather than give Tampa Bay an opportunity to return their extra point attempt for a 2-point score to make it a 1-possession game.
Rivera really could not have managed the ending any better. His team is now 3-6 thanks to the win.
Photo: Feb 26, 2020; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Washington Redskins coach Ron Rivera speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
