RG Free

As is the case during every NFL offseason, big names hit the free agent market. There are numerous reasons for such, but guys like Marques Colston, Antonio Cormartie, Eric Berry, Olivier Vernon, and Eric Weddle (among many others) are big name players who will likely be available. Age, skill set, position, and many other factors will play a part in where those guys land, but if you follow the NFL, you will be interested in what teams they end up playing for. However, now that his tenure in Washington is officially over, the biggest name on the market is now probably Robert Griffin III.

I know that technically Von Miller, Josh Norman, and Muhammad Wilkerson are potentially free agents, but for the sake of this piece, I am going to assume that they are re-signed by their current teams. If somehow that does not happen, then shame on either the Broncos, Panthers, or Jets, but as of right now, I do not see any of those guys moving. So right now, the focus shifts to Griffin.

RG3 set the league on fire as a rookie, and when I saw him play the Giants twice that year, I was thoroughly impressed. He could throw, and he could definitely run, and when he won Rookie of the Year, it was obvious that I was not the only one impressed by what he was doing. What I also saw was a type of offense that I had rarely seen in the NFL. He was often times running plays out of the shotgun and pistol formation that were atypical of the NFL. There were multiple guys in the backfield behind and along side him, but the system seemed tailored to him perfectly. Mike Shanahan was his head coach and Kyle Shanahan was the offensive coordinator, and I was really impressed by how a coach like Shanahan, with an old school mentality, was able to build an offensive scheme that fit such a new school type of quarterback. Great coaches are able to adapt to the players they have, and Shanahan had done just that. However, when the Redskins moved on from Shanahan and hired Jay Gruden as their head coach, all of that changed.

Griffin had always been a threat when he ran with the ball, but it seemed like he had the talent to throw the ball from the pocket as well. And despite the success he had as a rookie, it has been proven time and time again that in order for a quarterback to reach the highest level in the NFL, he needs to be able to stand in the pocket and deliver the ball. As a rookie, Griffin had shown flashes of potential to be able to do that, but he had not come close to mastering the craft, and that is where his deficiencies were highlighted once Washington hired Jay Gruden. Gruden came in with a system that emphasized pocket passing, and Griffin regressed. There were too many times that he held on to the ball too often, and when he did run with the ball, he was taking too many hits. Eventually he was injured, and replaced by Kirk Cousins. After that, it only got worse and worse for Griffin, until he spent all of last season on the bench as Cousins became entrenched as Washington's quarterback. So then, Griffin became expendable.

The writing had been on the wall for a while, but now RG3 is officially open for business. At 26 years of age, he is now free to sign with anyone that is willing to make him an offer. In my opinion, a starting quarterback is the most important position in all of professional sports, and despite his recent disappointments, I think that Griffin still has a chance to blossom into at least a serviceable NFL quarterback. There are a few quarterbacks likely to be drafted in the first round of the upcoming draft. I am not sure that any of them will be future superstars, but scouts know far more than I do, and teams will surely spend their first round picks on more than one of them.

In the NFL we know today, first round quarterbacks are usually thrown right into the fire. Blake Bortles, Andrew Luck, Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston. None of them sat and learned as backups during their rookie seasons, and that is likely to be the case this year as well. Any team that selects guys like Paxton Lynch, Carson Wentz, or Christian Hackenberg will probably put them on the field Week One. So that is why it is tough to find a place that RG3 might land and have a chance to start immediately.

As I survey the league, there are really a limited number of places that I can see Griffin landing with a chance to be on the field when the 2016 season opens. The Cleveland Browns need a quarterback, but with a top pick and a dreadful history at the position, I do not see that as a likely landing spot for Griffin. Other than that, I really only see the Texans and Rams as teams that will have open competitions at the position going into next season, so maybe Griffin should look there. Aside from that, I think Griffin just needs to accept the fact that despite an unbelievable rookie season, he may need to sign somewhere as a backup and once again prove his worth.

There is no question that Griffin has some of the skills needed to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. His combination of arm strength and mobility is excellent. However, those talents alone do not guarantee success at the highest level. Griffin showed last season that he could be content being a backup, and I think he might need to show the same level of patience this year as well. However, because he is still so young and because he has displayed so much talent in the past, I think that he is surely worth a shot for any team in need of a quarterback. He will not cost much as a discarded QB in free agency, but I think that any team willing to take a shot on any of the top quarterbacks in this draft class are just as likely to hit gold on one of them as they are on a still young and incomplete, but potentially terrific Robert Griffin III.

Daily Giants Update: Just like I said yesterday, the Giants need to get rid of Jason Pierre-Paul and Victor Cruz. The combine just started, so it is time to start finding replacements for them.

Daily Rangers Update: The Rangers lost to the Devils last night, so that is obviously not good. Next up is a very good St. Louis Blues team tomorrow night.

Daily Diamondbacks Update: Apparently, Josh Collmenter is not only an ace of a long reliever, but he teaches physics to the team as well. It isn't exactly news, but during Spring Training, sometimes you need to make news on slow days.

Daily NBA Update: How about C.J. McCollum? This guy is having probably the most underrated and unknown season in the league right now. Portland may not advance anywhere in the playoffs, but with McCollum and Damian Lillard, the Trail Blazers are surely worth watching.