Rex Grossman trying to mark his territory in Washington
Washington’s newest starting quarterback, Rex Grossman knows what his reputation in the NFL is and he wants to shake it off. He said on Wednesday,
“I think I'm definitely stereotyped as an inconsistent quarterback and I'm doing everything possible to change that perception. And the only way you can change that perception is to play consistently.”
Grossman is replacing quarterback Donovan McNabb who was benched in favour of Grossman after the Washington Redskins were eliminated from the play-off race. McNabb has since been demoted to the third quarterback for Washington.
In his debut for Washington, Grossman’s passer ratings were 93.4 with four touchdowns and 322 yards. He also threw two interceptions in the game against the Dallas Cowboys. The Redskins lost 33-30, following a late field goal by the Cowboys. Even in defeat,
Grossman’s performance was impressive enough to make him a contender for the starting position next season. The only problem is his consistency. He would throw a 100 passer ratings game one week and 10 in the next. One week he wouldn’t throw an interception
and in the next he would throw four. It is always somewhat of a gamble with Grossman. 2006 was the last full season Grossman played. In 2007 he was benched by the Bears after just three games and started a total of nine games since the 2006 season. Grossman
said,
“There's not been a lot of play time to show I can be consistent and in this offense I feel I can be consistent and play at a high level each week, and not have those disastrous games I had in '06 when we got bailed out by our defence.”
He hasn’t had much time on the field in 2010 either. Before the game against Dallas, Grossman threw a total of just four passes. The Redskins acquired Donovan McNabb in the off-season and made him the starting quarterback, slashing Grossman’s chances of
starting for Washington. Now that McNabb has been benched, Grossman has three games to pacify his doubters. He would face the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New York Giants in the coming two weeks.
Grossman said that there were low expectations of the quarterback and that was a motivation for him to prove his critics wrong. Against the Cowboys, the out-of-action quarterback got off to a slow start but after a few slow drives he appeared to be more
comfortable on the field. By the second half, Grossman was taking the Redskins on long touchdown drives but still had trouble holding on to the ball.
He allowed two turnovers in the first half of the game and threw his second interception in the final drive of the game. Grossman stated,
“There's always things you can improve on. I need to take care of the football. My main goal going into the Jacksonville game is no turnovers.”
The quarterback is more in tune with the Redskins because he has spent more time practicing with the team than McNabb has. It translated into a faster offence against the Jaguars that helped the Redskins in the final minutes of the drive. Grossman said,
“We were able to get to the line with 18, 19 seconds left on the play clock, which allows you to make changes at the line or get a better read on who the line's going to block, or how you're going to attack a certain coverage. It puts more pressure on the
defense.”
The Jaguars are a week defensive side and have a negative turnover ratio. Grossman wouldn’t be under too much pressure at the EverBank field. His real challenge would begin when the Redskins go toe-to-toe with the New York Giants. The Giants are one of the
strongest defensive sides in the league and have the second best pass rush. If Grossman can keep up his game against the Giants, his chances of starting again next season for the Chargers improve. He just needs to show a little consistency.
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