Kirk Cousins Proves He's Got a Long Way to Go to Become Redskins' Savior

The Washington Redskins had a great girlfriend. It looked like a match made in heaven. But the relationship began to sour just beyond that infamous one-year hump. And so they broke up with franchise quarterback Robert Griffin III—at the very least, in the words of Ross Geller, they were on a break—giving them a chance to be easily charmed early this year by backup Kirk Cousins.

But that honeymoon period may be over after Cousins threw four interceptions as part of an abysmal performance on national television Thursday night in a 45-14 home loss to the division-rival New York Giants.

Now, the 'Skins and their fans may be wondering who's best for them: Griffin, Cousins or neither. 

When your quarterback isn't delivering in this quarterback-dependent league, it always feels as though the grass is greener on the other side.

That was certainly the case as Griffin struggled throughout his sophomore season, hampered by a right knee that had undergone reconstructive surgery in the previous offseason. And as new head coach Jay Gruden implemented his pro-style offense this summer, it continued to look as though RG3 was a step or two behind Cousins. 

Griffin's Week 2 ankle injury gave Cousins a chance to sweep the team off its feet. And seven quarters into his run as Griffin's interim replacement, he was doing exactly that. 

And then Thursday night happened. 

Cousins turned the ball over five times, throwing four picks in the second half of what otherwise would have been a competitive game as the Redskins dropped to last place in the NFC East.

It was only Cousins' sixth career start, compared to 30 for Griffin. And yet RG3 has never turned it over more than three times in one outing, let alone four or five. 

Considering that Cousins entered Thursday's game on somewhat of a hot streak, his terrible performance comes as a surprise to many. After all, he ranked fifth in the NFL with a passer rating of 105.8, and he had thrown just a single pick while surrendering just two sacks on 83 dropbacks. He helped the 'Skins dominate the Jaguars in relief of Griffin in Week 2 and nearly led them to an upset victory in Philadelphia in Week 3. 

But maybe we—yours truly included—were just victims of the quarterback honeymoon stage. The reality is there were red flags we may have been overlooking, simply because we wanted to convince ourselves Cousins might have been "the one."

Truth is, Cousins had already developed a habit of padding his stats early in games before becoming significantly less effective when it matters most. The Redskins trailed New York 24-7 at halftime, but at that point Cousins wasn't the main culprit. His play took a nosedive in the second half:

	Comp.%	TD	INT	YPA	Rating
1st half	68.4	1	0	7.2	106.5
2nd half	42.9	0	4	8.6	34.2

Nothing new. Dating back to last December, here's how Cousins has fared in the first half versus the second half:

	Comp.%	TD	INT	YPA	Rating
1st half	65.8	5	2	7.7	96.1
2nd half	49.2	4	9	6.1	48.9

Why is that happening? Same reason we should probably expect Cousins to keep coming back to earth on a broader scale over the next few weeks. Basically, defenses are figuring him out.

With opposing coordinators making halftime adjustments, Cousins is being made uncomfortable. He's making bad decisions, he's less accurate, he's more skittish in the pocket, and his mechanics are deteriorating. 

This is a testament to Gruden's game plans the past two weeks, and those put together by Mike and Kyle Shanahan last December. During the scripted portion of recent games (usually the first 15 or 20 plays), Cousins has looked reliable, if not heroic. But when he's off the leash later, everything hits the fan. 

Unfortunately, Gruden and his staff can't script entire games. 

Cousins still has a chance to steal the permanent starting quarterback job from Griffin, but franchise quarterbacks are at their best as games wear on. Say what you will about RG3, but that has often been the case with him. 

	Pass attempts	Comp.%	TD	INT	YPA	Rating
Griffin	480	61.5	16	8	7.5	88.6
Cousins	197	53.3	7	14	6.6	54.5

It's easy to get excited about oft-forgotten mid- or late-round draft picks like Cousins because you truly never know where the next Tom Brady or Kurt Warner will come from. The reality, though, is that you're almost always going to get your hopes up. 

Guys take the league by storm every year, and most of them fade as soon as defenses have been given enough tape to work with (Scott Mitchell, Derek Anderson, Tommy Maddox, Elvis Grbac, etc.). That doesn't bode well for Cousins, considering that he and his talented arsenal of weapons were embarrassed Thursday by a so-so defense lacking several key players. 

Next up, Washington has Seattle and Arizona, both of which had top-10 defenses last season and do again early this year.

Cousins continues to state—most recently via Todd Dybas of The Washington Times—that he knows this is Griffin's franchise to lead and that he simply wants to "give him a team with a good record" when he's healthy again. 

Considering what happened Thursday as well as the fact he's now 0-2 as a relief starter, the upcoming schedule indicates there's a strong chance Cousins will hand the reins back to Griffin without having accomplished even that muted goal. 

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFC East for Bleacher Report since 2012.