Robert Griffin III and EJ Manuel: From 1st Round Draft Picks to Quarterback Cast Offs

During Monday’s press conference, Washington Redskins’ Head Coach Jay Gruden announced that the starting Quarterback for the 2015 season would be Kirk Cousins.  This announcement comes on the heels of the weekend preseason game in which former starting QB Robert Griffin III did not play due to concussion issues.  Gruden said that Griffin’s injury had nothing to do with the decision and that Cousins’ play during the preseason earned him the job.

These last few years have been a rollercoaster experience for the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner.  After being drafted #2 in the 2012 NFL Draft by the Redskins, Robert went on to have an excellent first season at Quarterback and as a rookie along with being a Pro Bowl selection.  But the highs of this ride took a quick turn downward when he tore ACL and LCL ligaments in his knee during a playoff game.  Since then, the last couple years have been full of injury and inconsistent play issues for Griffin.  No one has ever doubted his talent, but he is a shell of the Quarterback he was in 2012. 

In the meantime, the Redskins fired the Head Coach and General Manager who drafted Robert and brought in Jay Gruden.  Gruden, entering his second season with the Redskins, has shown by his actions and odd verbiage his disinterest in Griffin being the starting Quarterback.  He has shown preference for Cousins and Colt McCoy.  Cousins and McCoy have shown flashes of the talent they showed in college that got them drafted by NFL teams, neither has beenconsistent in displaying their abilities at the professional level.

The Redskins have players who can play the Quarterback position, but none of them are that much better than the rest.  Of the three players who were competing for the starting job: Griffin has the best throwing arm, Cousins has the high Football IQ, and McCoy has the greatest intangibles.  All of these elements make for a great college Quarterback, but in the NFL a player must have more than just one great skill. 

The truth is that this situation is just like what happened in Buffalo with Head Coach Rex Ryan’s QB competition.  Tyrod Taylor has been named the team’s starting Quarterback, despite a solid preseason from former 1^st round draft selection EJ Manuel.   Both Ryan and Gruden went into this preseason with an idea of who they DIDN’T want to start at Quarterback.  Both Head Coaches did not draft the highly touted players, both Rex and Jay had preference for other players on the roster, while both players went out of their way to be professional through the whole situation.

That is the part that bothers me the most.  You have two young men in Manuel and Griffin, they try to do the right thing by working hard and be professionals in public but they are the ones cast aside by their team’s coaches.  Not that any player should be given a starting position in the NFL based just on if they handle themselves professionally; but at some point, in a world full of athletes getting arrested for numerous felonies, we spend so little time promoting the positive guys?  Yes I know Griffin is not the most well liked player in the Redskins organization, so then maybe he should be on another team.  Yes I know Manuel was overvalued by the Bills when drafted in the first round of 2013 NFL Draft, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the skill set to be a solid NFL starting Quarterback. 

While Manuel and Griffin may never live up to the expectations of the teams that drafted them, don’t be deceived into thinking Taylor and Cousins are going to be that much better than the players they beat out for the starting job.  Taylor always had the arm talent, the truth is that he is Russell Wilson Lite: an athletic Quarterback with average stature who is an ultra-competitor with underappreciated arm talent.  Cousins was always considered a lock to make an NFL roster, the truth is he is most comparable to Frank Reich: undervalued coming out of college, goes on hot streaks for a period of games but unable to sustain consistency over a full season of play. 

Time will tell what the future holds for Robert and EJ, but I think it is safe to say their futures are not with their current teams.  Both men need a fresh start and a new opportunity in the NFL.  I mean, if Michael Vick has been signed by three NFL teams since getting out of jail, Manuel and Griffin should at least be able to have long careers as journeymen Quarterbacks, worst case scenario, right? 

Top Ten Thursday: Top Ten NFL Free Agency "Busts"

The NFL Offseason is here and free agency has had some surprises already.  But I cannot escape the memories of past free agency “busts”.  So, its Thursday and its time for my Top Ten for the week.  Lets review my list of Top Ten NFL Free Agency “Fails” from past off-seasons.
 

10. Jeff Garcia (Left the San Francisco 49ers, Signs with Cleveland Browns in 2004)

After being selected to the Pro Bowl three times in four years, Garcia was a hot commodity when he hit the free agent market in 2004.  The Cleveland Browns coveted a talented starting Quarterback after years of debacles at that position.  But signing Garcia to a 4 year, 25 million dollar contract didn’t fix anything.  Garcia was 3-7 as a starter and played mediocre.  Garcia showed though that the problem was the Browns, not him, because he resurrected his career in 2006 when he played stellar football for the Philadelphia Eagles then became a Pro Bowler again in 2007 in Tampa under the guidance of QB guru Jon Gruden. 
 

9. Ahman Green (Left Green Bay Packers, Signed with Houston Texans in 2007)

Green was a consistent performer in Green Bay rushing for 1,000 yards six times in seven years.  In 2007 the Houston Texans were still in the “football wilderness” trying to find the key to being a winning team in the NFL.  They thought one of keys to winning would be a good running back.  But when Houston gave Green a four year, 23 million dollar deal they did not know that Green would never again rush for more than 300 yards in a single season.  Maybe with a last name like “Green” he was only meant to ever be successful in “Green Bay”.  Of course, getting older and playing a position in the NFL that gets a lot of punishment might be a better explanation for Green’s career downturn.
 

8. Desmond Howard  (Left Green Bay Packers, Signed with Oakland Raiders in 1997)

After leading the NFL in Punt Return Yards and Touchdowns, Desmond Howard had a breakout game in the Super Bowl.  His 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown set the tone for the Packers as they would win Super Bowl XXXI.  That offseason Oakland Raiders pursued Howard hard and signed him to a four year, six million dollar deal.  While this is the smallest deal of the “fails” on this list, what made Howard’s tenure in Oakland a “bust” was the fact that the Raiders tried to convert Howard in to a playmaker at Wide receiver.  And the Raiders failed.  Interesting that Howard would return to the NFC after two seasons in Oakland and THEN he got selected to the Pro Bowl as a member of the Detroit Lions in 2000.
 

7. Nnamdi Asomuga (Left Oakland Raiders, Signed with Eagles in 2011)

There was a time in the NFL when Asomugha was in the discussion as one of the top defensive backs in the NFL.  After an season with eight interceptions then three straight Pro Bowl selections, Nnamdi was considered one of the top free agents available in 2011.  Asomugha got paid by the Philadelphia Eagles but that investment didn’t pay off on the football field.  Despite snagging four interceptions in two seasons Asomugha played average at best and never lived up to the hype of him as an elite cornerback.  He got beat on numerous plays and after two seasons the Eagles released him back into the world of free agency.
 

6. Elvis Grbac (Left Kansas City, Signed with Baltimore Ravens in 2001)

Elvis Grbac was coming off the best season of his career and a Pro Bowl selection.  People in the media thought Grbac was entering the prime of his career.  The Baltimore Ravens were looking to upgrade at Quarterback after Head Coach Brian Billick expressed his frustration with the previous starting Quarterback Trent Dilfer even though the team just won the Super Bowl.  When Grbac arrived in Baltimore he made the bold statement “This is a great team…I am going to make it better.”  Instead, Grbac played mediocre throwing 15 touchdowns and 18 interceptions and was outplayed by older, backup QB Randall Cunningham when Grbac got injured mid-season.  After losing in the playoffs, the Ravens asked Grbac to restructure his contract to help the Ravens with cap room, Grbac was indignant and the Ravens released him.  Shortly thereafter, Grbac retired unceremoniously. 
 

5. Larry Brown (Left Dallas Cowboys, signed with Oakland Raiders in 1996)

Another Super Bowl MVP who got a payday from the Oakland Raiders.  In Super Bowl XXX Larry Brown had the great fortune of being the “other cornerback” opposite of Deion Sanders and because the Steelers didn’t gameplan to avoid Larry Brown, he ended up with 2 interceptions and a Super Bowl MVP.  So when Larry Brown was given a five year, 12.5 million dollar contract, Brown should have given Deion Sanders a cut of that money.  Brown had more interceptions in that Super Bowl than the rest of his career, 2 in the Super Bowl, 1 in next three seasons.   
 

4. Alvin Harper (Left Dallas Cowboys, Signed with Buccaneers in 1995)

Another Dallas Cowboy who couldn’t perform up to the expectations of a big free agency contract.  After four seasons in Dallas Harper signed a four year, 10.6 million dollar contract and was expected to be the Buccaneers top receiver.  In two seasons in Tampa he caught three touchdowns total and was out of the league within four years.  Harper found out how hard it is to rack up big statistics and win games when you don’t have Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith as teammates.
 

3. Dana Stubblefield (Left san Francisco 49ers, Signed with Washington Redskins in 1998)

From 1993 to 1997 as a San Francisco 49er Stubblefield was a Pro Bowl selection three times and recorded 15 sacks in 1997.  In 1998 he received a six year, 36 million dollar deal under the expectations he would continue to be a great player.  Instead Stubblefield had a total of seven sacks and 87 tackles.  Underwhelming numbers for a guy who was making an average salary of six million per year.  Ironically he returned to the 49ers after being released by the Redskins and in two seasons Stubblefield produced a total of seven sacks and 53 tackles.  Seems like he should have never left San Francisco.
 

2. Jeff George (Left Minnesota Vikings, Signed with Washington Redskins in 2000)

Another free agency bust for the Redskins happened a couple years later when they didn’t realize Jeff George was “fool’s gold”.  After a surprising 12 game run in Minnesota when George racked up 2,816 passing yards and 23 touchdowns in just 12 games, he got “rewarded” a four year, 18 million dollar contract and the starting QB job in Washington.  He proceeded to throw 7 touchdowns, 9 interceptions in 8 games over two seasons and had confrontations with members of the media and the Redskins coaching staff.  The former number one overall draft selection has not played in a NFL regular season game since 2001.
 

1. Albert Haynesworth (Left Tennessee Titans, Signed with Washington Redskins in 2009)

For the Redskins, Haynesworth was more than just another free agency “bust”, he was an epic failure after signing a seven year, 100 million dollar contract.  Within three years Haynesworth found himself on the outside looking in as NFL teams banished him for his lack of work ethic, bad character, and his poor performance.  After being selected to the Pro Bowl in two consecutive seasons and racking up a total of 14.5 sacks and three forced fumbles, Haynesworth was obviously only in it for the money.  He made sure he worked the system and got around 42 million of that 100 million dollar deal he signed.  Apparently buying boats and criticizing other players was a better use of Haynesworth’s than playing up to expectations or his abilities.