CLEVELAND -- The play unfolded the way Washington Redskins hoped. They ran a play-action fake, the safety froze and then they adjusted to a slightly unexpected route. Everything was good up until the end, when Pierre Garcon dropped a ball.
That play against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday showed who the Redskins want to be offensively. On the previous play, they ran the ball for 5 yards, setting up a second-and-5. So they sold the run again -- and Garcon conned the safety into thinking he was coming to block him. But then Garcon turned it up field to a spot that wasn't the original plan and quarterback Robert Griffin III fooled the corner into thinking he was throwing underneath. Then came the drop.
However, in the preseason it's about seeing how players handle plays and Griffin did a nice job on this one. It wasn't exactly a highlight of his night, but that wasn't his fault. If the Redskins are going to do much offensively, the run game must set up the pass and on this series it did.
"It's great that me and Pierre are on the same page," Griffin said. "We saw the same thing and have to execute and finish the rest of the play. It's good to see him good enough to be a good deep threat for us."
In the Redskins' 20-17 preseason win over Cleveland, Griffin completed 4 of 8 passes for 36 yards. The starting offense managed a field goal. For Griffin, there was the usual good and bad -- areas to build on and areas to fix.
He did a nice job on one bootleg to his left, getting his hips around and delivering a ball to receiver Ryan Grant for 22 yards. Earlier, the two connected on a third-and-5 for 9 yards when Grant ran a cross and caught the ball in stride.
And Griffin picked up a third-and-2 with a 3-yard run.
But there was a downside and it's one that needs to improve. The red zone offense did not work in their three plays inside the 20-yard line. Griffin missed on two fade passes (one of which was not the primary read); it's a throw that hasn't always clicked in practice this summer, either.
It's an issue that must be resolved: Last season Griffin completed 14 of 31 passes inside the 20-yard line with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Three years ago he completed 24-of-39 with 10 touchdowns and no interceptions -- his ability to run changed how defenses played them here and it opened up the pass.
The stat that coach Jay Gruden liked: No sacks of Griffin, though he was hit hard a couple times on blitzes, whether he could have done anything about it or not, I don't know yet. But those hits always seem worse vs. Griffin than most other quarterbacks.
Overall for Griffin, he threw twice as many passes as he did in last summer's preseason opener. He got to run around and make a few plays.
"There's no need to overthink anything," Griffin said. "Let your instincts take over and that's what you do. We'll continue to do that."
That needs to happen if Griffin grows into the sort of quarterback the coaches need.
