The Browns put quarterback Robert Griffin III on injured reserve today after a shoulder injury he suffered when he lowered his shoulder into Eagles cornerback Jalen Mills on Sunday, and Hue Jackson can already sense the criticism coming for Griffin.
Shortly after the Browns announced the move, Jackson told reporters that it isn’t fair to Griffin to criticize him for the injury because he wasn’t trying to do it.
“It’s really unfortunate because Robert worked extremely hard to put himself into position to be our quarterback, to be one of the team leaders, and it’s just very unfortunate,” he said. “Please, let me make it known, Robert didn’t get hurt trying to run into a linebacker or a DB.”
Obviously, Griffin wasn’t “trying” to get hurt, and he was trying to get out of bounds when he collided with Mills. But he did run directly into Mills, rather than sliding feet-first. That was a major mistake, and it’s fair to criticize him for that, just as it’s fair to criticize any quarterback who doesn’t protect himself.
Griffin’s inability to avoid sacks and hits has been a huge problem throughout his career, and it’s a problem he still hasn’t been able to correct. It may be the problem that ends his career.