Cleveland Browns: Week 3 college football quarterback tracker
A new weekly segment will be tracking and analyzing the top quarterbacks in college football for the Cleveland Browns to look at in preparation for next April’s draft.
The Cleveland Browns just began the 2016 season, so it may be too early to start tracking potential draft choices. However, it isn’t too early to turn our attention toward the top quarterback talent around the country.
The Browns season-plan got a major shuffle when it was announced starting quarterback Robert Griffin III sustained a serious shoulder injury and would be placed on IR with the earliest time to return being Week 10. The Browns signed Griffin this past March to a two-year contract. With the signing of Griffin, coach Hue Jackson and the front office virtually acquired their quarterback for the 2016 season. Or so they thought.
The Browns passed on drafting Carson Wentz this spring so they could give Griffin the starting opportunity. Griffin put together an impressive offseason in which he gained support of teammates and coaches. The Browns brass planned to give Griffin the season and let him play and see what they had in the former Rookie of the Year.
The ultimate plan was hoping Griffin could stay healthy and that he could develop under offensive-minded head coach Hue Jackson, becoming a capable starter for the organization for the future. However, with the injury plague striking Griffin again, in which he will miss an extended amount of time this season, it changes the Browns’ plans dramatically.
The question now revolves around whether the higher management of the Browns trusts Griffin to still be the quarterback of the future. Without the ability to prove himself for the full season and with yet again another injury it is unlikely the organization can put any trust whatsoever in Griffin’s ability to be a mainstay at the position.
It is a tough break for Griffin, who was excited and motivated to revitalize his career as a starting quarterback. The Browns simply can’t put stock in his comeback project and will need to address the quarterback position with their first draft pick in 2017, as the team must find a franchise quarterback for the future to try to finally bring stability to the position.
Luckily for the Browns, the 2017 quarterback class will be filled with many talented prospects worth giving a long look at. Every week I will break down film and analyze how these top prospects are performing on a weekly basis.
Next: Deshaun Watson