Robert Griffin III and Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson both had high hopes coming into the season. For Jackson, signing Griffin was a way to build a team quickly and pocket a boatload of draft picks in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles. For Griffin, it was a chance a at redemption for a sour ending in Washington and an opportunity to prove he could play NFL quarterback. Neither of those things are going to happen.
I love this team and believe in the men on it. Keep pushing @Browns #DawgPound
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) September 12, 2016
At least this time RG3’s end with a team wasn’t entirely his fault. I mean, some of it was. Griffin didn’t play well at all against the Eagles Sunday, going 12-for-26 passing for 190 yards and one interception and five carries for 37 yards on the ground. But the real reason it’s all over is an injury, this time a legit one for Griffin. He fractured the coracoid bone in his left shoulder and Monday the Browns placed him on injured reserve.
Cleveland will now had the keys to quarterback Josh McCown who is already offended that you think he sucks, even though all you’re doing is trusting you eyes, his past play, and every instinct inside you as a football fan.
“For us to just sit back and say, ‘Yeah, this is the year that we’re gonna tank’ and all that, for a player that’s not our mindset at all,” McCown told NBC Sports. “And that’s not our expectation. And it fires me up when people say that.”
Since winning OROY in 2012, Robert Griffin III has made just 21 starts, a result of a tough mix of injuries and benchings.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) September 12, 2016
So, needless to say, McCown should be super pumped right now.
Back to RG3, I don’t think this means his career is over. And, believe it or not, I’m not just saying that because Colin Cowherd predicted it and going the opposite way from anything he says is just a smart way to live your life.
No, I’m saying it because he’s got too much talent to just fall by the wayside completely. That’s not to say RG3’s career as a starting quarterback could be over. It definitely could, but if he wants to hang around the NFL for a decade or so as a back up, he should have that opportunity. If he’s smart, he’ll work hard to sign with a team like New England or Green Bay this offseason and work on his QB skills.
Robert Griffin III has been placed on injured reserve. pic.twitter.com/BQBPS0gWLj
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 12, 2016
The Browns are actually in great shape. Sure, they may end up with the worst record in the league again, but that’s a good thing for Hue Jackson and what I think is without question the weakest roster in the NFL. He already has a ton of picks thanks to the trade with the Eagles and after Caron Wentz, the guy he could have drafted at No. 2, carved up his defense Sunday, he’ll have no excuse not to spend that pick on a a quarterback.
Rookie QB Cody Kessler will get his chance before the season is out too. I’m excited for Kessler. If you’ll recall, I had him ranked No. 6 in my increasingly prophetic final quarterback draft rankings one spot ahead of Jared Goff. Kessler has the tools to be the next Drew Brees and Jackson knows how to call a game for a slightly undersized quarterback.
https://twitter.com/Adam_Jacobi/status/775393194989137920
Still, there’s little doubt the Browns are now in a pitched battle with the San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans and San Diego Chargers for that No. 1 pick. Unless Kessler looks like Brees immediately, it’ll be hard for Jackson and the Browns to not pull the trigger on Clemson’s DeShaun Watson in this coming April.
In the meantime this will be a great opportunity for Jackson to kick the tires on some currently unemployed free agent quarterbacks. There’s no reason to panic. The worst the Browns’ record is this season, the better Jackson and the team will be in the future. I’d take a long look at Josh Freeman, who I think has gotten a raw deal from the NFL, rookie Marquise Williams out of North Carolina as well as T.J. Yates and Matt Flynn, who seem to always get a call before the season is up.
