The Washington Redskins and quarterback Robert Griffin III are heading for a split at some point in the near future. The writing was on the wall during coach Jay Gruden's first season with the team last year and was re-painted in bright neon when Gruden recently announced Kirk Cousins as the starter. What began with hope and optimism has, in typical Redskins fashion, ended in disarray and regret.
Griffin will likely not be with the team for much longer, though a trade is virtually out of the question thanks to GM Scot McCloughan's decision to exercise the fifth-year option worth $16 million on Griffin's contract. That means an outright release is the most plausible conclusion to this scenario. If the situation unfolds like that than Griffin will have his choice among his suitors.
While the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals have been mentioned as possible landing spots, the Carolina Panthers are another candidate to keep your eyes on, according to MMQB.com's Peter King.
"Carolina is an interesting place, because there are built-in running chances for the quarterback in coordinator Mike Shula's offense," King wrote. "Because Derek Anderson is a solid backup, this would only be a plan if the Panthers would be willing to sit Griffin for a year and have him learn behind Cam Newton and Anderson."
Newton is coming off a season in which he missed two games and struggled with ankle and rib injuries. Like RGIII, Newton takes a lot of punishment as a runner and is therefore more susceptible to injury. Having a capable backup outside of Anderson, who runs hot and cold under center, would be beneficial.
Griffin may be damaged goods at this point but he's still just 25-years-old and only three years removed from Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. It's too early to firmly concede that he can never again be a productive player. In Carolina, he'd be able to develop at a slower pace while backing up Newton.
Whether or not he'd be amenable to that kind of arrangement is anyone's guess.
