Robert Griffin III was hoping to turn his NFL career around with the Cleveland Browns this season, but that has not been the case. He suffered yet another injury that kept him out for the majority of the season and that could very well signal the end of his tenure with the Browns.
According to ESPN’s Pat McManamon, the Browns are expected to release Griffin this coming offseason.
Hue Jackson was firm in his support of Griffin all season long. He didn’t seem to waver even when the quarterback went down with injury and Griffin was put back in the starting lineup immediately when he returned. There aren’t a ton of other options for the Browns, although McManamon did mention that Tyrod Taylor will be a free agency target if the Buffalo Bills decide to let him go.
In the five games that Griffin ended up playing this season, he completed 59.2 percent of his passes for 886 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. He also rushed for 190 yards and two touchdowns.
Griffin is just 26-years-old, but hasn’t been able to put everything together. The Washington Redskins drafted him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. He was expected to be a major superstar, but injuries early on in his career completely derailed him from reaching his full potential.
Whether the Browns will actually end up releasing Griffin or not is unknown at this point in time. He has another season left on his contract, which the Browns could decide to let him play out. One more year would give Cleveland a clear answer on whether Griffin can turn things around.
That being said, it will be interesting to see what happens this coming offseason. Cleveland will have a lot of decisions to make. They could take a quarterback with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, or they could address other needs first and build a team that doesn’t have holes around the quarterback.
Expect to see Griffin’s name mentioned in rumors early and often this offseason. Cleveland may end up releasing him, although that is far from a sure thing at this point in time.
