The Washington Redskins were hoping to avoid quarterback drama this season, but instead they fueled it even more by benching Robert Griffin III for the season before the year even began. Kirk Cousins will be the starter until further notice which alters the offensive plan heading into Week 1. With Cousins more of a pocket-passing quarterback for the Redskins, could he be the better fit for Jay Gruden's offense moving forward?
According to Gruden, the Redskins have not given up on Griffin despite the benching. He stressed via ESPN.com that Washington will not be trading Griffin nor will they be releasing him this season. Gruden stressed that the franchise still believes in Griffin, but they needed to move forward with Cousins this year in order to have some consistency at the position. The question is whether or not those words will still ring true if Cousins plays well. Considering Griffin has a $16 million fifth-year option his name, it is doubtful.
"We don't feel like he's a distraction at all," Gruden said, via ESPN.com. "You can never have too many quarterbacks in your building. It's very important. We learned that the hard way last year. You never want to use three, but this is a violent game and quarterbacks are at risk. When you have three, you want to hold onto them."
According to Yahoo Sports, the announcement that Cousins will be starting hurts the fantasy value of Alfred Morris and Matt Jones. Michael Salfino of Yahoo Sports is reporting that with Cousins, Morris could end up being a fantasy bust. The running back averaged 3.5 yards per carry when it was not Griffin under center. That is paired with the lackluster preseason from the running back. Jones did not appear to be too much better. The Redskins are hoping both players can split the carries and be efficient for Cousins.
DeSean Jackson had his best stretch of the season when Cousins was under center over any other quarterback. Pierre Garcon also had strong numbers. They will be the main threats for the quarterback along with Jordan Reed across the middle of the field. Both Jackson and Garcon have been complimentary of what Cousins can do on the field which is a good thing for the quarterback considering he is playing out the final year of his contract and is hoping for a new deal to come his way if he performs well as a starter.