Facing Colts, Robert Griffin III Still Starting

Apparently, the clock for Washington Redskins’ quarterback Robert Griffin III (RG3) will get to tick a little longer. After last weekend’s press conference in which Redskins’ head coach Jay Gruden put the pressure on his struggling young quarterback by making such honestly blunt comments:

"“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. It’s a production-based business. We haven’t won many games lately with him”."

The Redskins have decided to continue to go with Robert Griffin III as their starting quarterback. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, RG3 will get another start as the team faces off against the Indianapolis Colts this upcoming weekend:

Griffin was 11 for 19 for 106 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, 0 interceptions, and had a quarterback rating of 73.6 versus the 49ers this past weekend. It’s worth noting that he was sacked 5 times on the afternoon against the 49ers staunch front-seven.

While the Redskins were 2-0 behind back-up quarterback Colt McCoy, the team still feels inclined to roll with Robert Griffin III, at least for another week. It will likely draw considerable headlines, as Griffin, the 2nd overall pick of the 2012 NFL Draft, will face off against the Colts’ Andrew Luck, the quarterback selected one pick before him at #1 overall. Since taking Offensive Rookie of the Year Honors in 2012, Robert Griffin’s play at the quarterback position has regressed, while Andrew Luck has only gotten better.

What was once a heated debate has really been pretty one-sided as of late in Luck’s favor. Still, Griffin possesses unique running ability, so he’ll present a bit of a different look than the Colts have been accustomed to seeing at the quarterback position for much of the season. On the season, Griffin is 83 for 119 (69.7%) for 869 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions in 5 starts. For a player that was once a big-time playmaker, he and the Redskins’ offense have really lacked in big plays in recent weeks. The Colts’ defense hopes to continue that theme.