The Washington Commanders have fined one of their assistant coaches for the comments he made about the attack on the U.S. Capitol, which happened on Jan. 6, 2021. Jack Del Rio, the defensive coordinator for the Commanders, was fined $100,000 for downplaying the attack as a “dust-up” in comparison to riots across the country the previous summer, per CBS Sports. Commanders head coach Ron Rivera made the announcement of Del Rio’s fine on Friday.
“(Coach Del Rio’s) comments do not reflect the organization’s views and are extremely hurtful to our great community in the DMV,” Rivera said. “As we saw last night in the (Congress) hearings, what happened on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was an act of domestic terrorism. A group of citizens attempted to overturn the results of a free and fair election, and as a result, lives were lost and the Capitol building was damaged.
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“Coach Del Rio did apologize for his comments on Wednesday and he understands the distinction between the events of that dark day and peaceful protests, which are a hallmark of our democracy,” Rivera continued. “He does have the right to voice his opinion as a citizen of the United States and it most certainly is his constitutional right to do so. However, words have consequences and his words hurt a lot of people in our community. I want to make it clear that our organization will not tolerate any equivalency between those who demanded justice in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the actions of those on Jan. 6 who sought to topple our government.”
Del Rio made the initial remarks when he replied to a tweet about the Jan, 6 hearings that began this week. He asked why the Capitol assault is discussed more than the “summer of riots, looting, burning and the destruction of personal property.” He went on to say that the Jan. 6 insurrection was not a “major deal” and the protests following George Floyd’s 2020 murder were overlooked.
Del Rio, 59, joined the Commanders in 2020. He is known for being the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2003 to 2011 and led the team to the playoffs twice. Del Rio was also the head coach of the Oakland Raiders (now Las Vegas Raiders) from 2015 to 2017 and led the team to the playoffs in 2016.
