Think Robert Griffin III is guaranteed to start for the Cleveland Browns at quarterback next season? Think again.
It’s safe to assume Griffin, entering his fifth NFL season, is going to be QB1 for the Browns, who begin another rebuilding process, hoping that this time it ends with making the playoffs some time in the next two or three years instead of another rinse-repeat kind of movement. But they still have Josh McCown on the books, and he (sadly) was their best quarterback last season. He’ll probably start on the bench this year, but it’s not a sure thing.
There have been good things being said about Griffin, who played for the Washington Redskins in his first four years in the league, but only really impressed in his rookie year. Many think that without his speed and running ability, that has pretty much abandoned him since the injuries of his rookie year, Griffin can’t be an effective quarterback, and that his passing ability is too damaged to be counted upon. The Browns are counting on Hue Jackson and the new staff to prove that theory wrong.
Griffin didn’t play a single game in 2015, sitting behind Kirk Cousins. In 2014, through nine games and 7 starts, he had a 86.9 passer rating, throwing four touchdown passes and six interceptions, while also rushing for 176 yards and a touchdown. He signed a two-year, $15 million deal with the Browns. McCown started in 8 games last season for Cleveland, throwing 12 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, posting a 93.3 passer rating. He still has two years with a $10 million overall cap hit on them.