Del Rio fined for comments

Jack Del Rio, an assistant coach for the NFL’s Washington Commanders, has been fined $100,000 by the team for his comments about protests in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd and the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Coach Ron Rivera announced the fine in a released statement Friday after meeting with Del Rio earlier in the day. He said the defensive coordinator’s statements were hurtful to members of the local community and did not reflect the views of the organization.

Asked Wednesday about a social media post he made earlier in the week, Del Rio downplayed the deadly insurrection and questioned why the protests in the summer of 2020 after Floyd’s death were not receiving the same scrutiny. Del Rio called the Jan. 6, 2021, riot “a dust-up at the Capitol,” which he later apologized for.

“He understands the distinction between the events of that dark day and peaceful protests, which are a hallmark of our democracy,” Rivera said in the statement, adding that Del Rio had a constitutional right to voice his opinion. “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.”

Rivera said he feels strongly after their conversation that Del Rio “will have a greater understanding for the impact of his language and the values that our team stands for.” He said the money will be donated to the United States Capitol Police Memorial Fund.

Del Rio, 59, is going into his third season running Washington’s defense on Rivera’s staff and in that time has shared his conservative political views on social media numerous times. A Twitter post Monday night prompted questions to Del Rio after an offseason workout, including whether he was concerned about how his thoughts might go over with players, the majority of whom are Black.