Interesting development as Jay Gruden has decided to bench RG3. Reports say that it does not necessarily mean the end of RG3's career in D.C. A few thoughts on this:
1. If McCoy struggles, who goes back in? Seems a little difficult to put RG3 back in there. On the other hand, it may take some of the pressure off of the guy as people will get their wish of having McCoy in there.
2. RG3 benched himself. He struggled. Yes, he didn't have the best help but he certainly didn't do himself any favors. Was watching the NFL Network this morning and LaVar and Terrell Davis were going over a few plays in which RG3 just did not see wide open receivers that could have gone for big plays. RG3 is just pressing. It clearly seems mental. He just isn't trusting either his arm or the WR. I'm not saying every play where he misses or checks down or takes a sack there is an open receiver but I imagine there are a lot of plays/points being left on the field because of his inability to make the right throw.
3. Where does he go from here? This is an interesting question because the Skins have left the door open. He has the physical tools to be successful. Coming out of college, he showed that he could make every throw needed in an NFL system. He thrived his rookie year in an offense that was built around his abilities. Since that rookie season, he has struggled for a variety of reasons. I think he needs to get his head right and get the pressure off of him and may very well need a clean slate (new team) to jump start his career. The question is that in year three and after as many starts as he has had, it is a little difficult to understand his inability to read defenses and go through progressions. TD of the NFL Network seemed to agree with this and that if he can't do it now, he can't see him learning it well enough to become a franchise QB.
In any event, RG3's career is at a crossroads. He will get another chance no question - whether it is in D.C. or some where else. We'll see what he does with it. Seems like the guy is bright and is willing to work hard. I think he will have a chip on his shoulder. Question is can he put it all together in a positive way and return to be a quality QB. Time will tell.
2 comments:
I do not think this is the right decision at all.
RG3 did not play well. I agree with that. He is a young qb coming off two major injuries. How can anyone expect him to plug him in and just start magically throwing td passes all while playing behind a porous offensive line and receivers that are quitting on him? We all know he has talent and the skills and the intelligence to perform at a high level. He has done it before. It takes time to learn a new offense and fully recover from injuries and gain confidence. This is real life. It isn't Madden where you can plug and play players and they can perform instantly. There is a human factor that's not being considered.
Everyone is acknowledging that there are huge holes on this team that need to be filled. Especially on the offensive line but the coaches and media seem to be focused only on RG3. Even more troubling is that the receivers are not running their routes because they think they will not get the ball. How does that help the team? RG3 is out there getting destroyed while his offensive line cant block anyone and his receivers aren't giving 100%. Yet somehow its all RG3's fault. He is not being given time or support to work through his issues and become the QB he can be. He is a scapegoat in a literal sense.
I think the skins are making an immensely huge mistake here and will be setting the franchise behind. It is so unwise to just pull the plug after just a few games on a franchise QB, especially one that the skins paid so much for. There just seems to be no logic behind this decision. They are very rash. My only explanation to this is that there seems to be some predisposition that RG3 isn't the guy for this team.
The season is lost. Why put in McCoy to try and win a bunch of meaningless games? Why not let RG3 finish the season and really see what there is in him and then let things play out in the offseason. There are other holes that need to be immediately addressed. Let the QB position be for now. It just makes no sense. Having RG3 play is the better option than some stop gap QB that will be plugged in temporarily. Lets hope the skins front office isn't stupid enough draft the next franchise qb with the first round pick next spring.
This is why I have a hard time rooting for this franchise. They just cant shake the habit of making very poor decisions. If this was Gruden's decision, I think hiring Gruden was a very poor decision as well.
I know the skins have said that RG3 is in their long term plans. I think this is just a statement to soften the blow. RG3 is done in DC. I imagine he will be cut this offseason. It is highly likely he will be picked up quickly as the free agent market for QB's this offseason is very weak. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up playing great for a team that is a QB away from being a contender or competitive (Buffalo, Houston, Arizona, Kansas City, NY Jets, Tennessee, Tampa).
JSR, I hear where you are coming from. I agree with some of what you are saying.
Look, I am a BIG RG3 fan. I want the guy to succeed. He has certain abilities that no other QB in the league has.
It's hard to understand all the decisions that are made unless we are part of the coaching/management team that is making the decision. We basically speculate and share our opinions.
We agree that he is struggling (some of which is not his fault). I don't believe Colt is the answer. I would like to give more reps to RG3 to see if he can improve.
My only guess is that the coaches have reviewed the game film and watched RG3 enough in practice that he is struggling enough with his fundamentals and with understanding the concepts of the offensive system that he needs to step back and study. RG3 is taking a beating on and off the field. It might be best to get him out of the lime light and focus on getting himself right physically, mentally, psychologically, and from a football standpoint.
Again, was watching some game film breakdown of him on the NFL Network and there were several plays where he is just missing receivers. He is either not understanding the concepts of the offense and/or lacking confidence in himself or his receivers. Things need to get to a point where it is more natural for him. He's not there yet.
This offseason the Skins will have cap money to spend and all of their draft picks. I would not go after a QB. Fill in the holes at O line and Safety and probably some help at D line. Give RG3 one more chance to prove he can be "that guy." Work with him the entire offseason. Work on his fundamentals and his understanding of the offense and lets see what he can do.
They will never outright release the guy. I imagine he will be on the team OR if they can find a trade partner willing to give up a fair amount, they would trade him.
Again, the benching is understandable if in the coaches estimation, he is struggling enough (with his mechanics as well as his understanding the offense) that he needs to step back and be broken down to be built back up.
The interesting part is I would imagine Colt will start the not just this game but the next few and possibly the rest of the season. However, if he struggles in the first couple of games, would they consider putting RG3 back in or would they turn to Kirk?
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