The guy is facing probably the most pressure and adversity he has ever faced in his life in terms of his football career and abilities. Coming off of a lackluster performance followed by comments that give the impression he was throwing his team under the bus have resulted in him being slammed by critics.
It's great material for the media. My own thoughts are that it wasn't a great performance. He was not good. However, the team was not good. I won't deflect blame from him as he is the QB and more attention will go to him and more expectations are on him as the QB and a guy that was expected to be great and a guy that has been treated like a star without proving much. Still, we need to put things in perspective. None of us know what he is doing in practice. If he isn't performing there that's a bigger problem. All we see is game day. TB was one game. He has six more games to prove he is a franchise QB. It's on him. Gruden was very critical of him in Monday's press conference mentioning that his fundamentals and footwork needed work. He also mentioned that RG3 is receptive in listening and works hard so lets see if he progresses. The clock is on and RG3 needs to show something. Will be interesting to see how he handles these next six games.
On another front, RG3 spoke after the game and some of his comments were twisted to make it sound like he was throwing his teammates under the bus. Anyone that watched the comments would understand that that was not the case. He accepted blame and his message was that everyone in the locker room was together and understood the situation and that everything is going bad and everyone needs to step up and improve starting with himself. He was not deflecting blame nor was he ever comparing himself to Rodgers or Manning or anyone else. He was saying that no one can do it on their own and that football is a team sport and everyone needs to contribute. THAT SAID, RG3 should not have said any of this. I understand that he wasn't trying to disparage anyone or throw anyone under the bus but Jay Gruden cleared it up yesterday saying that RG3 should just talk about himself and not anyone/anything else. That is his job as the coach to discuss those things. Gruden had some meetings yesterday morning to clear the air recognizing how media/social media can take the words and spin them up and then it can get out of control. He said that they have to deal with those things in house. It's unfortunate because it creates unnecessary drama. Again, I don't doubt for a minute that RG3 did not intend to disparage anyone. He was trying to rally his team and said that he would battle with the guys in the locker room any time but things get twisted and it ends up having the opposite effect than what he intended. It's too bad but it is on him for talking too much. Just as he needs to learn his craft on the field, he needs to understand what the media does and their role and that it's best to just keep things simple and focused on himself. He has had a few brushes like this now and hopefully he is aware to just be quiet.
In the end, people are really starting to turn on RG3 and the Skins. It's a pretty critical time for him and this team. For me, I don't much care for wins at this point. Playoffs aren't even a consideration. What we need to see is progress and improvement -- week to week. We need to find out if RG3 is going to be part of the future as well as some other young guys. I would be most interested in finding about Morgan Moses, Spencer Long, and Phillip Thomas as all these guys are young, drafted pretty high, and would fill major gaps that this team has. Also, calls for McCoy or Cousins are silly. McCoy is a journeyman that was picked up off of the scrap heap. There is a reason for that. Cousins had his chance and loved throwing INTs almost as much as Cutler. These next six games are a tryout for RG3 to prove he can be that guy.
Wednesday is media day in the locker room so you can bet there will be much more stuff to be talked about this week.
2 comments:
It is a critical time for RG3. I think some facts are becoming lost.
1. Gruden is a first year coach inheriting someone else's team. It will take time for him to turn the skins into his team and get the guys he wants, install his game plan, and have it executed the way its supposed to be. How can anyone really expect this team to win right out of the gates with a brand new coach. It doesn't happen. If this was a good team to start with, Shanny would still be here. It is going to take some time. They finally have some draft picks coming, and are removed from the cap penalties.
2. RG3 is still learning this offense like everyone else is. He was injured for 7 weeks with a significant injury. How can anyone expect him to magically play at a high level after missing 7 weeks coming off of an injury. No quarterback can do that. Even Aaron Rodgers last year coming off the collarbone injury was sluggish and inaccurate during Week 17 and the wild card game. It was totally clear. RG3 has been back for only three weeks and is playing catch up. Its not objective to blame him to be taking the majority of the blame for these losses and failures. The O-line hasn't played well and defense hasn't held up its end. The Vikings game was on the defense and so was much of the Tampa game. If the defense did its part, the skins could have had two wins, and we aren't talking about this.
3. RG3 needs to shut up and play. Unfortunately he is required to address the media. Skins losses are like gold to the media. They love talking about it because it makes their job easier. They are in it for ratings. They need controversy to make ratings. You cant put too much stock in what every media personality spits out. Its biased for the interest of the media station he/she represents. They will twist words and take sentences out of context to create a stir for their own ratings. If you listen to any media source long enough they will basically tell you that losses and controversy make their job much easier.
You have to consider the facts. The team is not playing well. How can anyone expect them to with a rookie head coach that has inherited a team and a young QB coming off a significant injury who has basically only played in 3 games this whole season. I do blame the defense though. Haslett is not very good. He has had his time to build a defense and it hasn't happened. It is time to let him go.
I hope Dan Snyder and the Skins do not fall into the trap of listening to the media and just stay the course. The skins need some consistency. They need to show some sparks the remaining 6 games. They need to fill some holes this offseason and keep chipping away. It will fall in to place as long as they don't get impatient and overspend where they don't need to.
Pretty much agree with everything mentioned. I do think it is critical for RG3 to prove to everyone that he can be that guy these next six games. We need to see improvement. If he is making the same mistakes three games from now, it will only exponentially increase the attention and criticism on him. With that, will come frustration from teammates and coaches and it will seal his fate here in D.C. He needs to show that he can learn and improve.
I still believe in the guy but I need to see something. Agree that he needs to just shut up and play. He is not a star right now and being treated as such with endorsements and accolades seems pretty ridiculous. Have to find a way to do something against a pretty tough SF defense that can create pressure.
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