Redskins QBs Prove What We Already Knew
As soon as the Redskins took QB Kirk Cousins in this past April’s Draft, insane talk about a potential QB competition in Washington began. Aside from the fact that Robert Griffin III was taken long before Cousins in the same Draft (with a price tag of three First Round picks attached), the main reason why there would be no QB competition was simple: talent. Kirk Cousins is simply not the player Robert Griffin III is, and even if the Redskins threw a bone to the QB conspiracy theorists and did announce an open competition, it would end quickly and decisively in RGIII’s favor.
Last night, both players made their NFL debuts. Griffin took snaps with the Redskins first team offense and played against the Bills first team defense, and he had a wonderful performance in limited time. Griffin finished 4/6 for 70 yards and 1 TD, including an incompletion where Pierre Garcon realistically could’ve dragged his second foot before stepping out of bounds. Most importantly, Griffin looked poised, confident, and ready to utilize his talents in a successful way. It couldn’t have gone much better for the new face of the Redskins franchise than it did last night.
Later in the game, Kirk Cousins did not enjoy similar success. Playing with backups and against backups, Cousins could only muster 9 completions on 22 throws, with an INT included. Cousins would certainly have better luck if he were manning the helm of the Redskins first team offense, but he wasn’t exactly putting the team on his back and being let down by his peers. In fact, his INT resulted from throwing behind his WR. A better throw results in a completion, but instead the attempt was caught by the defender. That’s on Cousins, and it’s exactly the kind of error RGIII did not make.
Cousins has lots of good things going for him, and is regarded as a very cerebral player. However, he also has noted arm limitations, which is certainly no one has ever said about Robert Griffin III. Cousins will get a chance to develop into a nice player, but it won’t be as a starting NFL QB. It’ll be as a backup. Specifically, Robert Griffin III’s backup, because there is no QB competition. And even if there had been one, last night showed exactly why RGIII would win.