Cleveland Browns: RG3 must impress early in 2016
The Cleveland Browns are offering Robert Griffin III a second chance but that doesn’t mean he won’t face pressure to succeed in 2016.
The Cleveland Browns are not trying to hide the fact the organization is in a rebuilding phase. By drafting 14 players, and already signing 13 of them, the Browns are looking for new faces to be a part of this franchise as the trend of losing looks to be reversed.
Robert Griffin III is one of these new faces and he occupies the most heavily scrutinized position in all of Cleveland sports. As quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, much of the blame will fall on Griffin if the team does not have success in 2016, even if it is only partially his fault.
When he was initially signed, it did not seem like he would face much pressure in 2016, as the team was expected to be one of the worst in the NFL. But as time has gone on and the season gets closer, it has become clear that a 3-13 or 4-12 season with Griffin as the starter for all 16 games would doom his chances of being the starter in 2017.
He is being given a second chance, but if the Browns receive another top-5 or top-10 draft pick, a quarterback may be looked at to be the next quarterback of the future, unless Hue Jackson believes Cody Kessler can be that player.
Griffin should not face too much pressure from the coaching staff at the beginning of the season, but Jackson has the ability to put in Kessler or even Josh McCown if Griffin falters, to see who fits best with this new-look offense. It would not be a personal move, but it would be one that may end the NFL career of Griffin as a starting quarterback.
He still needs to win the starting job, but it looks like he will do that unless he shows up in training camp and forgets how to throw a football. Given he wins the job, he will be working with the first-team offense throughout the preseason and will be given the chance to succeed. But if he comes out and makes too many mistakes in the first two or three games, some will be calling for him to be removed.
NFL coaches are not as rash as fans, but Jackson knows he cannot have a player on the field who is not giving the team the best chance to win. If McCown or Kessler appear to be better options, one of them may replace Griffin before the midway point of the season.
It would be nice to be in a situation where Griffin is the solidified starter for years to come, bringing some stability to the team, but he is not the same player he was back in 2012. He can still work to be great again, but the Browns may be looking to replace him if he struggles from the outset of the season.