So, the latest story to rile Redskins fans is that Robert Griffin III is “done” because he compares himself to Peyton. According to this story on BusinessInsider.com that cited ESPN Insiders QB ranking:
“To get better in this league, you have to have a degree of humility. Griffin sees himself like Peyton, in that light. When he looks in the mirror, he is seeing things that everybody else is not seeing. That is why I was surprised when they gave him the fifth-year [option] and said it was an easy decision.”
Lies. And really weird structural phrasing.
Although it’s not NFL lying season, between the opening of free agency and the Draft, NFL front office people are lying liars who lie. It’s a professional expectation in a business where there is no advantage to being truthful.
This spate of negativity shows three things about RG’s future path:
ONE. The Redskins are Griffin’s last best chance to be a starter anywhere in the NFL. Nobody loves you like the team what drafted you. When players like Blaine Gabbert can make an NFL roster and Josh McCown can be a starter, RG is hardly “done.” But, if this season is anything like the last, he could conceivably find himself competing for a backup spot somewhere else.
TWO. How ever RG sees himself, the league is close to comparing him to another name, Ryan Leaf. A busted season would be embarrassing for all parties, making comparisons to Leaf and Heath Shuler inevitable.
THREE. It’s too soon to declare Griffin a bust of Leaf’s magnitude, but the trade deal that landed him in Washington certainly was. Griffin as a developing pocket passer was not worth what the Redskins gave up getting him. As a development project, Griffin should have been valued somewhere between Ryan Tannehill and Russell Wilson in the 2012 Draft. The Redskins were the only team that saw things differently. Subsequent events are more proof of how messed up the Redskins’ front office has been in the Snyder era.
Hog Heaven was a major proponent of that trade, but we are appalled at the way the collective team leadership (looking at you, too, RG) mismanaged Griffin’s career.
Maybe things are better with the Scot McCloughan hire, but Washington is where reputations come to die. McCloughan could be labeled “McClueless” in three years and it won’t be entirely his fault.
The messed up Redskins offense
Everyone focused attention on Griffin’s performance, but the entire offense went into steep decline last year whoever was quarterback.
The Redskins were wrong to go so completely away from Griffin’s strengths. Griffin is downright dangerous when he improvises**. That’s when defenses break down. He has to throw on the move sometimes. He has to run read option sometimes. Griffin in the pocket scares no one but Jay Gruden.
(**Of course, Griffin improvised when he leeped while passing the ball in the Jaguars game. That was dumb football and it wrecked his ankle. It violated everything I understood about passing. Never leave your feet when throwing the ball. But I digress.)
The offensive line and defense did not improve magically in 2012. They looked better because RG was mobile. A modest bump in defensive turnovers complimented Griffin’s low INT rate. Griffin was the reason the team won. Otherwise, the Redskins had the same sucky six or seven win talent they have always had since 2000 … and have now.
Griffin entered the league with the potential to transform the position as a genuine dual threat quarterback. Michael Vick was not a duel threat. He was never a good passer. Nor is Peyton Manning a dual threat. He’s not running anywhere. I want RGIII to be RGIII, not Peyton Manning.
Griffin need not run as promiscuously as he did as a rookie. He is stellar when throwing on the move, not from the pocket. Give us a little more movement.
Figure this out, Washington. Save the Redskins’ future by saving Griffin’s career.
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