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Originally Posted by NC_Skins

Jay Gruden: 'Foolish' to make RGIII a pocket passer - NFL.com




So, he wants to use RGIII in a way that Shanahan did, which Robert absolutely hated. RGIII wants to be a pocket passer, and he hated the read option plays. Now you have a coach who's already not on the same page as his "franchise" QB in terms of direction. This is going to be a cluster fuck.


What the hell is with bringing all these guys in from Tampa Bay. Doug Williams? What exactly about his career (beyond player) as a coach/personnel guy that makes him qualified to be in this organization. We are NOT going in the right direction.

but then there is this:

Now, a few days later, we hear Gruden singing a different tune.

"My goal in training camp is to see how much he can develop as a drop-back passer," Gruden told Dan Pompei on the Sports on Earth website. "Obviously he can do the rollouts and the naked bootlegs and all that. But let's see what he can do from the pocket, and if he can run from there, that's when he'll really get a lot of yards."

OK, then.

According to Pompei, Gruden still wants Griffin to run, but more as a last resort than as a first resort.

"It's a long season," Gruden said. "It's a 16-game grind. You don't want him getting hit 15, 20 times a game on read options. You have to keep your stars healthy. You don't want to put him at risk too much. But that's who he is. It's what he is as a quarterback. He's very effective in that regard."

The read-option plays that helped Griffin earn virtually all of the major 2012 offensive rookie of the year awards will stay in the playbook—Gruden’s version of them, anyway—but they will be used very sparingly.

"I don't anticipate running a lot of read option," Gruden said. "I think if you use it three or four times a game, you'll have more success than if you try to feature your whole offense around it. It's not just tough on the quarterback taking hits, it's tough on the tackles with their aiming points, where are they going. It's something you have to practice a lot to get very good at."