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ROBERT GRIFFIN III did not fair well in Mike Sando of ESPN Insider’s quarterback rankings, in which Sando polled NFL coaches and evaluators and had them place starting quarterbacks into talent tiers.
35 NFL ‘insiders’, who all chose to remain anonymous, partook in the survey, weighing in on each quarterback and the tier they assigned them. Griffin ranked 28th of 32 quarterbacks, with 30.5% change in rating from last season, when he was 19th.
One offensive coach was blunt in his analysis of RGIII, placing him in the fifth and lowest tier.
“Five, and there’s no coming back,” the coach said. “He is done. The reason is, the injury slowed his legs, and his ego will not allow him to hit rock bottom and actually grind his way back up the right way.”
As Sando noted in his introduction and explanation of the tiers, “Tier 4 is typically reserved for unproven starters or those who might not be expected to last in the line-up all season. Voters used the fifth tier sparingly.”
A personnel director also said Griffin’s problems are more than just physical:
“To get better in this league, you have to have a degree of humility. Griffin sees himself like Peyton [Manning], in that light. When he looks in the mirror, he is seeing things that everybody else is not seeing. That is why I was surprised when they gave him the fifth-year [option] and said it was an easy decision.”
Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota, two rookies without a minute of NFL experience, were both ranked higher than Griffin.
Sando notes that one GM did put Griffin in tier two, saying he thinks Griffin is still adjusting to a new offense and making his way back from injury.
After a stellar rookie season, Griffin tore his ACL in the playoffs and has battled injuries and consistency issues in the following two seasons. Washington seems to be taking the long-view with him, however, picking up his $16.2 million fifth-year option and naming him the starter.
If Griffin can make strides over the next two seasons, Washington could be smart for sticking with him, but currently, the rest of the NFL has soured on him.
- Scott Davis, Business Insider.
