Washington Redskins coach Ron Rivera said he’s been working with owner Dan Snyder on a new team nickname in recent weeks.
“If we get it done in time for the season, it would be awesome,” Rivera told The Washington Post in an interview on Saturday.
“We came up with a couple of names — two of them I really like,” Rivera told the newspaper. He didn’t reveal the names.
Washington is likely to change their name, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter, after the team announced Friday it will “undergo a thorough review” of the nickname amid renewed pressure, given the national focus on human rights and social justice after the death of George Floyd in Minnesota.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement Friday that the league has had “ongoing discussions” with Snyder and was “supportive of this important step.”
NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith also issued a statement supporting the Redskins’ formal review of the team’s name.
Rivera told the Post it’s important that a new nickname respects Native American culture and traditions, while also saluting the military. Rivera is the son of an Army officer.
“We want to do this in a positive way,” said Rivera, who is of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent and is the only Hispanic head coach currently in the NFL.