Robert Griffin III, who played his final two seasons in Baltimore with Greg Roman as his offensive coordinator and Marquise Brown as a teammate, says that Brown wanted out because of Roman.
Griffin wrote today on Twitter that Brown, who was traded to the Cardinals during the first round of the NFL draft, didn’t think he could make the most of his talents -- and therefore make the most of his earning potential -- while playing in Roman’s offense.
“Marquise Brown wanted out of Baltimore because of Greg Roman NOT Lamar Jackson,” Griffin wrote. “Marquise knows G-Ro’s system runs through the backs and tight ends, so it’s unlikely a WR1 will get big money. The best way to get paid was to be in a pass first offense in @AZCardinals.
“Throwing the ball more is not the proven recipe for success for the Ravens. In the last 3 years, the Ravens have only thrown the ball more than running it once. That was last year and it was the only year the Ravens had a losing record. Lamar being out didn’t help either. Despite throwing the ball more last year the Ravens still averaged 90 MORE RUNS than passes over the last 3 years. The Cardinals averaged 116 more passes than runs the last 3 years.
“For reference, the chiefs haven’t run the ball more than they have thrown it in 10 YEARS. Marquise Brown had 146 targets last year but they weren’t all catchable targets. With Lamar being out down the stretch, Hollywood’s longest reception was 15 yards in the last 5 games. Arizona gives him an opportunity to be a star in a system he knows from college.”
It’s not the least bit surprising that Brown would rather play in an offense that will throw him the ball more, although pinning the blame on Roman may be unfair. After all, Roman is calling the plays that best fit Jackson’s skill set. So while Brown may not have any problem with Jackson, a team whose quarterback can run like Jackson is always going to run the ball a lot -- and that may not be attractive to many wide receivers.