Robert Griffin III Reportedly to Be Benched by Jay Gruden If Struggles Continue

The latest tidbit in the ongoing Robert Griffin III saga could serve as a prelude to his benching. ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported Sunday that the Washington Redskins quarterback could be benched in favor of Colt McCoy if he does not perform up to expectations in the team's Week 12 game against the San Francisco 49ers.

Griffin, 24, has been mired in controversy for much of the last two seasons. While many said his relationship with Mike Shanahan was at the root of his 2013 struggles—and subsequent benching for the season's final three games—Jay Gruden has also not been shy about calling out his team's franchise player, per NFL.com's Albert Breer:

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He's auditioned long enough. Clock's ticking. He's gotta play. We'll see...We want Robert to excel, we really do. But the last two games, it hasn't been very good, anywhere. We gotta play better around him. And the biggest thing for us as play-callers, and for him, we just have to come together and jell with plays he's comfortable with. That takes time. But we don't have a lot of time.

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Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

Connor Orr of NFL.com shared his thoughts on what a potential benching would mean, while also providing an additional report from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network:

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Jay Gruden didn't get in trouble for calling out Robert Griffin III earlier in the week. In fact, it might represent an organizational change in how Washington deals with its franchise quarterback.

According to NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport, the privileges that Griffin enjoyed during his first few years have now been eliminated. Among them: Griffin's wife being allowed at training camp practices when other player wives were not, as well as his family no longer having what equates to an all-access pass around the facility.

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Griffin has thrown for 763 yards with two touchdowns against three interceptions this season. Sunday will only be his fifth start of 2014 because of an ankle injury that cost him six games. McCoy replaced former primary backup Kirk Cousins over the final two starts of Griffin's absence, throwing for 427 yards and completing 36 of his 42 pass attempts.

Washington is 3-7 coming into Sunday, so its playoff hopes are nonexistent at this point. All of Gruden's decision-making going forward will need to have an eye toward the future, and the quarterback position is at the top of that list.

Griffin's $3.27 million salary for next season is fully guaranteed, but it's the last on his rookie contract. With the team facing the prospect of picking up an expensive option for the 2016 NFL season, it might be best to keep Griffin on the field and see what he has down the stretch.

Then again, with the entire beltway scrutinizing every decision, that's easier said than done.

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