Tough Times For RG3

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Robert Griffin III

In 2012, Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III was the life of the party. Griffin burst onto the scene by throwing 20 touchdowns passes to just five interceptions as he helped the Redskins win their first division title since 1999. Griffin’s exploits earned him the 2012 National Football League Rookie of the Year Award as the ‘Skins appeared poised to finally have themselves a franchise quarterback. But towards the end of the 2012 regular season, Griffin suffered a knee injury that should have kept him sidelined. Then Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan had Griffin play in Washington’s playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks and it was evident that his knee could not support him. Griffin would undergo off-season knee surgery with a eye on being healthy in 2013. Griffin was named as the Redskins starting quarterback for 2013 while missing the entire preseason. Griffin’s lack of effectiveness was on display as the Redskins were 3-10 with him as their starting quarterback last season which led to Shanahan being fired.

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Jay Gruden

Former Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Jay Gruden was hired to be the Redskins new head coach this season with his focus being on working with Griffin. In the first game of the regular season, Griffin was 29-of-37 passing for 267 yards as the Redskins fell to the Houston Texans 17-6. In the second game of the season, Griffin suffered a fractured ankle that sidelined him for six weeks. Griffin returned to the Redskins starting lineup in Week 9, but Washington would go on to lose their next three games. Amid speculation Gruden has now benched Griffin in favor of Colt McCoy and by the looks of things the relationship between Griffin and Gruden has been broken. Gruden is in his first year as Redskins head coach and it will be interesting to see that in a region strong on political power whether or not that it will be Griffin or Gruden that will win out on the favorite ballot of Redskins owner Dan Snyder.

After the Redskins Week 11 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Gruden wasn’t pleased with Griffin’s post game press conference as he felt that his young quarterback “should worry about himself” instead of his teammates, and because of that the coach’s patience appears to have all but evaporated.

In 2012, we saw RGIII the athlete captivate us. But now the ‘Skins need RGIII the quarterback if they are going to continue to employ him in D.C. Since Griffin’s rookie season, teams around the NFL have gained game film on how to defend him which is making life for him a bit tougher as he has yet to adjust. As a rookie if Griffin didn’t see his first passing option open, he would simply take off and make something happen with his legs. Under Shanahan, the Redskins also ran a good portion of the read-option offense which Griffin was comfortable with from his college days at Baylor. But to be a successful quarterback in the NFL, signal callers must have the ability to dissect defenses in order to find other throwing options which is something that Griffin is currently lacking. Griffin is playing tentative in the pocket as opposed to just letting things come natural which is the sign of a quarterback that is thinking too much instead of reacting.

Gruden took the Redskins head coaching job knowing that Griffin was going to be a project. But unlike Shanahan, Gruden isn’t attached at the hip with Griffin and he will look to use his get out of jail free card with him which falls at the feet of Snyder.

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Dan Snyder

Since Snyder became the Redskins owner, the team has had more changes at the quarterback position than that of a bus schedule. Griffin was supposed to be the guy that changed all of that, but he appears to have fallen into the Bermuda Triangle there just like everyone else before him. Griffin’s relationship with Snyder has previously drawn the ire of some of his Redskins teammates as they feel that the quarterback has been coddled by the owner and treated differently. However if Gruden is able to convince Snyder along with Redskins general manager Bruce Allen that Griffin isn’t the answer in Washington, then the 24-year old quarterback could be bidding farewell to the Beltway. 2015 will be the last year on Griffin’s rookie contract and the Redskins will soon need to decide if they are ready to ship him out of FedEx Field. The only way that I could see the Redskins releasing Griffin is if they are unable to facilitate a trade. Griffin is a young quarterback with potential and I am sure that there will be a team in the National Football League willing to give him a shot if the Redskins are ready to move on from him.

Regardless of where Griffin plays next season he must learn to become a better student of the game while also being a better leader as in three years he hasn’t fully been able to win over the Redskins locker room. There is a reason why there are not that many people that can refer to themselves as a starting NFL quarterback as it is one of the toughest positions to master in all of sports. It also has not helped Griffin that the Redskins have been one of the most dysfunctional franchises in sports under Snyder’s watch as there has been a revolving door at head coach and general manager along with at quarterback. Athletes like Griffin don’t come around that often, but a fresh start with a new NFL team after the humongous slice of humble pie that Gruden is serving up for him right now could be just what he and his ego need in order to get back on track.

Sources: Sportrac.com, Pro-football-reference.com

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By | 2014-12-07T13:54:49+00:00 December 7th, 2014|Categories: National Football League|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

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