Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III still hasn't been cleared to return to action, but the team is hoping that he'll be back after he sees an independent neurologist early this week.
Jay Gruden insists RG3, who is still waiting to be cleared, is not a ‘distraction’
Griffin is expected to see a neurologist early this week and Jay Gruden hopes he will then be cleared to return to action.
Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports
At a press conference on Sunday, Jay Gruden told reporters that the plan is still for Griffin to remain on the roster, although a decision about his spot on the depth chart will be made after he has been cleared. Kirk Cousins has been named the team's starter, but Griffin will battle Colt McCoy for the second spot on the depth chart.
“We feel like he’s a quarterback that’s young and talented that’s done some good things,” Gruden said on Sunday.
While carrying Griffin on the roster is a risk, Washington cannot release the quarterback right now and would have to wait until he’s been medically cleared or else the team would be stuck with paying his entire fifth-year option in 2016. That option is set to be worth more than $16 million fully guaranteed if he’s still on the roster in March. However, Gruden insists that the team values Griffin and intends to keep him for the 2015 season:
Gruden says he kept griffin because he was among best 53. "We don't feel like he's a distraction at all...You can never have too many QBs"
— Mike Jones (@MikeJonesWaPo) September 6, 2015 For now, Washington has to tread water while waiting for Griffin to be cleared. It’s unclear if the independent neurologist he’ll see this week will be Dr. Robert Kurtzke, who resigned last week and recently received criticism. Dr. Abraham Kader is expected to take over as the independent neurologist, but was reportedly going to work with Kurtzke on Griffin.
If Griffin is injured and unable to pass a physical at the end of the 2015 season, his $16.155 million salary for the 2016 season will be fully guaranteed. If he’s released, the team will absorb a more than $6.7 million cap hit for the 2015 season, but Griffin would be cleared from the books entirely in 2016 with no dead money.
The large cap hit for Griffin in 2016 makes trading for the former No. 2 overall selection difficult for any team, and would almost make a re-negotiated contract a must for any team that hopes to trade for Griffin and keep him beyond the 2015 season.
See More:
