Fansided

Jay Gruden: Coddled Robert Griffin III Has Been ‘Awful’

By Patrick Schmidt

Nov 2, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III (10) and head coach Jay Gruden on the sidelines during a timeout in the game with the Minnesota Vikings at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings win 29-26. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 2, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III (10) and head coach Jay Gruden on the sidelines during a timeout in the game with the Minnesota Vikings at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings win 29-26. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Jay Gruden had a number of critical statements about his starting quarterback, Robert Griffin III, who he says has been awful this year and coddled in the past so he’s not used to negative comments

More from NFL

The state of the Washington Redskins is getting uglier by the day and it may have reached a peak this week after Robert Griffin III, DeSean Jackson and head coach Jay Gruden aired their dirty laundry through social media and to to the press this week.

In the games that he’s played, our production from an offensive standpoint has been awful

Griffin III has regressed since his dynamic rookie year when he helped lead the team to the postseason and injuries have played a role in that, but Gruden thinks the fact that he’s been coddled throughout his playing career that he doesn’t know how to respond to adversity.

"“His biggest thing, he’s been coddled for so long. It’s not a negative, he’s just been so good, he just hasn’t had a lot of negative publicity,” Gruden said, via NFL.com. “Everybody’s loved him. Some adversity is striking hard at him now, and how he reacts to that off the field, his mental state of mind, how it affects his confidence, hopefully it’s not in a negative way.”"

Gruden is not the type to coddle any of his players as he expresses some frustration in a three-win season, his first year in Washington and first year as a head coach, and he cautions that his one-time franchise quarterback has a long ways to go in terms of development.

“He’s auditioned long enough,” Gruden said. “Clock’s ticking. He’s gotta play. We’ll see. … We want Robert to excel, we really do. But the last two games, it hasn’t been very good, anywhere. We gotta play better around him. And the biggest thing for us as play-callers, and for him, we just have to come together and jell with plays he’s comfortable with. That takes time. But we don’t have a lot of time.”

Asked what he needs to see from the former Heisman winner out of Baylor and the No. 2 pick in the draft, Gruden didn’t pull any punches or coddle his quarterback who could be tied to his future in Washington.

“Consistency. Just consistency,” Gruden said. “Since the preseason, in the games that he’s played, our production from an offensive standpoint has been awful. I think five touchdowns in all the drives he’s played, for whatever reason, and that’s not good. We’re still trying to figure that out.”

Like Gruden said, there isn’t much time left to figure it out and get Griffin playing at the level he’s expected to perform at. He hasn’t even better than backup Colt McCoy, so whether Griffin is the team’s answer at quarterback or if they need to go back to the drawing board could hinge on his performance and the team’s success or failures in the team’s final six games.

More from FanSided

Home/NFL