Cleveland Browns: Robert Griffin III Low Risk, High Reward

People are so used to seeing the Cleveland Browns get it wrong, it is no wonder people are skeptical when the Browns get one right.

The Cleveland Browns made the right move in signing former Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III.

I know what you’re thinking, Cleveland fans. You’re thinking that you’ve been burned before, time and time again, and that you aren’t going to let yourself get hurt again. Good. That’s smart, and not just because you may be nervous about trusting another new Cleveland front office and another new Cleveland coaching staff. Odds are that RG3 is not a long-term answer for the Browns. Heck, Griffin may not be on the roster of the Browns come April 2017.

So what?

Fans of the Browns should be alarmed if new head coach Hue Jackson was going all-in on Griffin so much that the club was locking its financial future with the QB who flamed out in Washington. There were, at first, reports that the Browns had overpaid to acquire a QB more so known for being injured and for becoming a locker room cancer than for scoring touchdowns over the past two seasons.

Relax, Browns fans, because those reports are not necessarily accurate.

@gerrydulac At same time, it’s structured as a 1-year deal with year 2 option and play-time incentives are NLTBE. Current cap hit $5 mil.
— Andrea Hangst (@FBALL_Andrea) March 24, 2016

@nwdrone410 Incentives that are Not Likely To Be Earned. AKA they don’t count against cap now. Likely To Be Earned incentives count immed.
— Andrea Hangst (@FBALL_Andrea) March 24, 2016

One can get a closer look at Griffin’s Cleveland contract via Spotrac. Griffin’s cap hit for 2016 is, as shown earlier, $5 million. Cleveland has guaranteed $6.75 million for Griffin. Things could get complicated and also expensive for the Browns if Griffin surprises his critics and finds a return to form that saw him win 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.

That would be a good thing for the Browns if that happened, obviously, but don’t let the hot takes voiced by some local media personalities get in the way of facts.

More from NFL Spin Zone

To summarize: The Browns are paying backup-QB money to a young man who turned 26-years-old last month, who has been named to a Pro Bowl and who has played postseason football.

The Browns weren’t finding Tom Brady, the Peyton Manning of old or even Andy Dalton in free agency. Cleveland could have pursued Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is so coveted by the New York Jets that Gang Green is holding out as long as possible before they have to pay the journeyman. The San Francisco 49ers are holding out hope that some team will trade for Colin Kaepernick before the end of the month.

Cleveland not only acquired Griffin without having to trade anything away. The Browns may also receive a mid-round NFL Draft pick if the team can find somebody who wants to land the services of veteran Josh McCown.

Maybe there is something to this “analytics” thing, after all.

There are two things that Browns fans everywhere will need to accept as gospel moving forward. The first is that there is not a single QB worthy of the second overall pick of this draft class. Not a one. It doesn’t matter if Carson Wentz of North Dakota State healed the sick during his pro day. California product Jared Goff could literally fly through the air during a private workout. Nothing is changing the fact that the Browns cannot afford to spend such a high draft pick on a QB this time around.

Maybe the Browns can get lucky and find a suitor such as the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, Jets or some other team who becomes so enamored with either Wentz or Goff that it wants to move up to pick No. 2. The Browns would, at the very least, have to consider making the trade. Cleveland has multiple holes on both sides of the football, and hitting on all of the picks that the team has now (which isn’t happening because no team accomplishes that goal) wouldn’t fill those gaps.

The wise move, analytically speaking, is to obtain as many high selections as possible for 2016 and, more importantly, for 2017 and 2018 via trades.

Secondly, all must remember that the Browns are rebuilding; again. You may not like to admit it, and those who have already plunked down money on season tickets for this coming fall may understandably be regretting that decision. Reality is reality, and the reality is that the 2016 season is going to be more-so of a massive training camp than it is a journey toward a potential postseason berth and a possible championship.

Maybe RG3 will prove that he can start for the Browns for two full seasons. Maybe he’ll never be the athlete and QB that he was in 2012. Somebody has to play QB for the Browns during the fall months. Griffin deserves the gig over Austin Davis, McCown, Fitzpatrick and Kaepernick if only because of the promise that once hovered over RG3.

Is Griffin prepared to play the role of mentor for a QB who the Browns will select later this spring, hopefully with a pick that is outside of the first round? Per Conor Orr of NFL.com: Yes.

"“It’s like you said, you have to compete,” Griffin said on a conference call with reporters Thursday, just moments after his deal was made official. “I’m just excited about the opportunity, like I said. After not playing football for a year, I’m really appreciative of the Browns stepping up and giving me an opportunity to go out and grow with their team, compete on a daily basis and lead the team. I’m really excited about that.”The second part of his quote was far more interesting, though.“If they draft a quarterback, (I’ll) take the guy under my wing. I’m considered a vet now after four years in the league and I’ve been through a lot more than a lot of guys go through in their entire career. I’ve got a lot of experience. I can help a young guy, but it’s not my focus. I don’t pick the players. (executive vice president of football operations) Sashi (Brown) and (coach) Hue (Jackson) and all those guys will take care of that stuff, but if they draft a quarterback, it doesn’t bother me at all. I’m just ready to compete.”"

More nfl spin zone: The Case For Robert Griffin III

Griffin essentially has one season of football to prove his worth to the Browns before the team reevaluates the situation next winter. The absolute worst-case scenario is that a Browns team that isn’t going anywhere in 2016 has to hit the figurative reset button regarding the QB position a year from now just as the team did earlier this month when it cut ties with Johnny Manziel before signing Griffin.

So what? The risk of the Browns losing a bunch of games this fall is worth the potential reward of Griffin maybe resurrecting his career in Cleveland.

Home/Cleveland Browns