Del Rio calls Jan. 6 attack ‘dust-up’
Commanders assistant coach Jack Del Rio issued an apology for his word choice after doubling down on a comparison he made on social media between the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and the protests in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd.
Del Rio, a former linebacker who now runs the Commanders defense, downplayed the deadly insurrection and questioned why the summer of 2020 protests weren’t receiving the same scrutiny. His comments Wednesday after an offseason practice came a day before a House committee investigating the pro-Donald Trump disruption of Congress 17 months ago begins public hearings on the matter.
“People’s livelihoods are being destroyed, businesses are being burned down, no problem,” Del Rio said. “And then we have a dust-up at the Capitol, nothing burned down, and we’re going to make that a major deal. I just think it’s kind of two standards.”
Amid backlash for his comments, Del Rio released a statement on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon apologizing his word choice. Del Rio said it was “irresponsible and negligent” to call the riot a “dust-up.”
But he said he stood by comments “condemning violence in communities across the country.”
His comments followed a Twitter post Monday night in which he said, “Would love to understand ‘the whole story’ about why the summer of riots, looting, burning and the destruction of personal property is never discussed but this is ???” He was responding to a tweet about the Congressional hearings into Jan. 6.
Del Rio and coach Ron Rivera say they aren’t concerned if the opinion will upset Black players who make up the majority of their team, some of whom spoke out about police brutality and racism in the wake of Floyd’s killing two years ago.
Del Rio, 59, played 11 NFL seasons from 1985-95. He has coached in the league since 1997, including stints as the head coach of the Jaguars from 2003-11 and Raiders from 2015-17.
Tony Buzbee, the lawyer representing all 24 women who have filed civil lawsuits against Deshaun Watson, said his law firm will “soon be joining the Houston Texans organization and others as defendants” in the lawsuits against the quarterback. On Tuesday, The New York Times reported that the nondisclosure agreement that Watson gave to some of the plaintiffs to sign came from the Texans’ director of security, Brent Naccara. The Times also reported that the Texans provided a hotel room where several of the massages took place.
Golf: Paul Casey withdrew from next week’s U.S. Open at The Country Club in Boston. It’s the third straight major the 44-year-old Brit has missed this year because of a back injury. Casey was replaced by Canadian Adam Hadwin, the first alternate from the Dallas qualifier last month.
Soccer: Real Madrid extended Luka Modric’s contract for another year, which keeps intact the midfield that helped the club win a record-extending 14th European title this season. The 36-year-old Croatian is now signed through June 2023 and will return to play alongside Toni Kroos and Casemiro. The trio has helped Madrid win five Champions League titles in the last nine seasons.