Is RG3 done?

I'm just waiting for Snyder to arrive in Waco with a blank check for Briles.

 

That was a fun read, and I say this as someone who likes Griffin enough that I'd like him to be successful. Forget all the crap about throwing guys under the bus or "is he a leader?" Cooley broke exactly why Griffin failed. I love that sort of stuff.

 

I don't think he's repeatedly making all those basic mistakes. I think he had a horrific game in which he completely forgot how to play football. Whether that's part of a larger regression remains to be seen.

If he goes back to taking better care of the ball, he's still an accurate passer and an intelligent guy. He needs to make major improvements to his pocket awareness, and he needs to mature a bit. His athleticism masked a lot of shortcomings, but there's nothing to suggest he doesn't have the tools to overcome those now that he's just an ordinary athlete.

But, even at this point, is he any worse an option than, say, Michael Vick?

 

Just rereading some of that article and, as Cooley notes, it's just one game. So my question is: Why did it happen? Was he unprepared for this particular game? Is he still balky and nervous about the knee and it's affecting his decision making? Why is all this happening to a Rookie of the Year who seems to have the skill set to be successful in the league?

 

Pern, my guess is all of that "skill set," especially the statistical accuracy, stemmed from the defense being aware that he could bust a touchdown run on any play. Now that isn't the case, and we are seeing the effects of a guy who has never played from the pocket in his whole life.

 

Snyder is in love with this guy, so he's not getting traded.

The only positive Washington has going for it here is that it hasn't signed him to his monster extension yet. If anybody with that franchise has a clue (I know, I know...) they'll make him play out his rookie deal, but that probably won't happen.

It's one thing when a guy has a great rookie season and then comes back to earth after that, but we've also gone from, "This guy is going to be one of the faces of the NFL, to being the second coming of Vince Young. That probably isn't fair to VY because he had a winning record as a starter. I don't think RG3 is as fucked in the head as Young is, but he's got some serious issues. The stuff he's said in the last week is worse than anything Cutler has ever said.

He threw his entire team under the bus. That's just insane.

 

I'd be more concerned with what he said than how he played.

Guys have bad games and people overreact to it. He's where Cutler was a week ago.

But he threw his entire team under the bus and he probably whined to the owner about his coach's comments where the coach had to apologize.

 

I get the feeling that peripherals -- how good he feels, the crowd, the media, coaches in his ear, whether his left tackle looked at him cross-eyed after the last series -- affect Griffin more than it does a great quarterback.

I have a hard time forgetting the lasers this guy threw as a Baylor senior and a Redskins rookie. But he simply may not have the emotional makeup to be an NFL quarterback.

 

I think that's the largest part of it, which is why the leadership question is not crap. No position in professionals sports demands it more, and I don't think Griffin is wired for what is being asked of him.

Also, the "one game" stuff is just Cooley trying to say something nice. He has been a below-average QB since the start of last season.

 

I wonder how much of that was on Cooley's own and how much he went over with coaches. My guess is a lot of the latter.

The play that he had DeSean running down the middle was staggering.

 

I'd be more concerned with how he plays than what he says. Missing Jackson on that seam route was a much bigger mistake than what he said in the post-game press conference. NFL players will put up with a lot bullshit from players who play well. They won't put up with it from guys who play like shit.

And, not for anything, I don't think the quote was nearly as bad as it is made out to be if you heard the whole thing.

That sentence looks a whole hell of a lot worse than the entirety of what he said, which was:

That last sentence takes a lot of the edge off the first sentence. And he's not wrong about any of it.

 

There is obviously more happening behind the scenes than just that quote. Jackson said as much during the bye week when he was a guest on Fox and said he had to calm guys down and keep them pointed in the same direection.

DeSean Jackson, voice of unity. That's pretty funny in its own right.