Ron Rivera will continue to stick with Taylor Heinicke at quarterback

The Washington Football Team could get projected starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick back from injury soon. Fitzpatrick, who suffered a hip injury in Week 1, was initially scheduled to be out for eight weeks. As Washington approaches Week 7, two more games remain until a bye in Week 9, meaning Fitzpatrick may be under center in Week 10.

The only way Washington doesn’t turn back to Fitzpatrick is if backup Taylor Heinicke pulls off wins at Green Bay and Denver in the next two weeks. Until then, though, head coach Ron Rivera isn’t planning on turning to Kyle Allen, despite Heinicke’s struggles the last two weeks.

“No, I’ve been very confident in what we’ve done with Taylor,” Rivera said Monday when asked if he would turn to Allen. “I know last week he had his moments; this week, the same thing can be said. Not every week is going to be as productive as people want it to be, as we want it to be.”

This is probably the right decision. Unless Heinicke completely falls apart and has four interceptions, it’s best to stick with him until Fitzpatrick returns. Making two quarterback changes in a matter of weeks will not be good for the team and will only increase the pressure from fans if Allen comes in and performs well.

As for the near term, Heinicke again has two major opportunities in front of him. He has proven, if nothing else, he is a high-quality NFL backup. If he can go to Green Bay and take down the Packers, he can force Washington to keep Fitzpatrick on a bench a little longer.