INDIANAPOLIS -- Browns head coach Hue Jackson essentially stuck to legalese when speaking about Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III.
The team owes Griffin a $750,000 roster bonus in less than two weeks, and may or may not be including him in their future plans. Jackson opted to state the obvious on Thursday morning.
"Obviously, Robert is on our roster right now," he said. "I think there's some things he did well, some things he needs to improve at and we're going to keep working with him until we don't. He's one of the three quarterbacks on our team right now and I'm very fortunate we have some guys under contract right now to work with. But we have to continue to get him better as he moves forward."
The day before, executive vice president Sashi Brown said he could envision a scenario where the team heads into the season with Griffin, Cody Kessler and Kevin Hogan as their quarterbacks. Jackson echoed those sentiments, but did hint toward a possible shakeup to come (he would not entertain a question about trading for a veteran quarterback).
"I think we have to feel that way because that could potentially happen," Jackson said. "It depends on how this all unfolds. But I know we're doing anything and everything we can to improve that position. I think that's really important. I think that's where Sashi was coming from. It can happen that way. It can be that way. But at the same time that's a reality too. We're going to do everything we can to find a quarterback for the Cleveland Browns."
Reading the tea leaves, it's hard not to imagine Jackson standing on a table to get his way and get a new quarterback. While Brown is typically more reserved and measured in his comments, Jackson seems to be itching for the chance to see this year's prospects again. He talked about how pleased he was that North Carolina prospect Mitch Trubisky measured in above his 6-foot-2 threshold for quarterbacks. He talked about what he's looking for this week during private interviews and, later, workouts.
"Most importantly, guys have to have arm talent," Jackson said. "And, can a guy process football at the rate you need him to do it? Is he a guy who can lead an organization? Because I think we all know the quarterback becomes the face of the organization. That's really important. And a lot of pressure comes with that, so you gotta be able to handle that."
Jackson told our own Chase Goodbread that he plans on remaining hands-on with quarterbacks during their pro day workouts. Last year, Jackson famously doctored footballs to see how Jared Goff and Carson Wentz would respond to playing with a wet ball. This year, pro days at Clemson, North Carolina and Notre Dame should be a lot of fun.
