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After suffering a concussion this past Sunday against the San Diego Chargers, it sounded like QB Robert Griffin III would probably miss the Cleveland Browns’ Week 17 finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers. There was some surprising news on Thursday, though, as Griffin was not just cleared to practice, but to see in-game action.
Griffin will start on Sunday, according to head coach Hue Jackson, assuming he doesn’t suffer any setbacks. The same condition from the previous week holds, though: if Griffin struggles, Jackson will consider pulling the card to insert rookie QB Cody Kessler into the game, which would come full circle to when he benched Kessler for veteran QB Josh McCown earlier this season.
If I ignore the No. 1 overall pick being in jeopardy, I am glad that Griffin is in line to start this week. I know many fans can’t fathom him being the club’s starter in 2017, but he is probably the best interim option the club has if they don’t sign a quarterback in free agency. He’s slowly shown signs of getting more comfortable in the offense, so it’s too bad the season comes to a close this Sunday for him.