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CLEVELAND (AP) The Redskins were unwilling to risk their future.

Kirk Cousins took care of their present.

With star quarterback Robert Griffin III sidelined with a sprained right knee, Cousins threw two touchdown passes in his first NFL start and led Washington to its fifth straight win, 38-21 over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

An unheralded fourth-round pick, Cousins has spent his first season as Griffin's understudy.

For one day, he relished a chance to be the star.

"It's a game I will remember for a long time," said Cousins, who passed for 329 yards and kept the Redskins' playoff push from losing any speed. "If I die tomorrow, I can say I started a game in the NFL and we won. It's a good feeling."

Cousins connected with Leonard Hankerson for both TDs in his first career start, Alfred Morris ran for two TDs and the Redskins (8-6) barely missed a beat without the talented RG3, who was told Saturday night he would not play or be active for the crucial game.

Almost 24 hours after learning of the Redskins' decision, one coach Mike Shanahan based on the recommendation of doctors, Griffin was still upset.

"Players play, so I was not happy with the decision," Griffin said. "But at the end of the day, that's the decision they went with. I respect that, but it doesn't mean I necessarily have to like it. They said they were just protecting me from myself, not allowing me to put myself in harm's way."

Cousins finished 27 of 36, rushed three times for 22 yards and ran Washington's offense with RG3-like precision.

A week ago, he came off the bench to rescue the Redskins after Griffin sustained a Grade 1 sprain of the lateral collateral ligament. Cousins was on the field from the opening kickoff against the Browns and showed he can lead Washington just as effectively as his more hyped teammate.

"Kirk did an excellent job of executing everything we asked him to do," Shanahan said.

With their longest winning streak since 2007, the Redskins moved into a three-way tie with New York and Dallas atop the NFC East.

Afterward, Griffin conceded Washington's win took out some of the sting out of having to stand on the sideline in a burgundy-colored warmup suit and stocking cap.

"It was a great business trip for us," Griffin said. "I got healthier by not playing, we won the game and put ourselves in position to control our own destiny."

For the Browns (5-9), this December is on its way to ending like so many others.

Cleveland had its three-game winning streak stopped, its playoff hopes dashed.

There doesn't appear to be much of a chance that coach Pat Shurmur will keep his job. In fact, the Browns may undergo another massive overhaul once new owner Jimmy Haslam and CEO Joe Banner get done. They must have cringed at the mass exodus by Cleveland fans from the home finale after the Redskins pulled away in the fourth quarter.

"We let ourselves down and we let the whole city of Cleveland down," said rookie running back Trent Richardson, who had two rushing TDs. "We're supposed to go out with a blast. It was a big ballgame and we didn't do what we were supposed to do."

Browns rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden struggled from the outset. He went 21 of 35 for 244 yards and threw two interceptions in the third quarter, both leading to Washington TDs. Weeden had several passes batted down and he did nothing to quiet debate over whether he should be Cleveland's QB going forward.

Shurmur refused to call Weeden's performance a "setback" but that's exactly what it appeared to be.

"Obviously I didn't play well enough for us to win," Weeden said. "I didn't play well for the most part throughout. I'm not losing any confidence over it, because I felt like I'm still going in the right direction. I just didn't play well enough to put this team in position to win. I put our defense in a tough spot. You just can't turn it over."

Griffin practiced all week and assumed he would start after displaying his mobility. But the Redskins were concerned he could further injure his knee and decided to sit him.

"He tried to show us everything that he could possibly do to get himself ready to play," said Shanahan, now one win behind Mike Holmgren for 11th place on the career list. "I was so impressed with how he worked. But at the end of the day, the doctors did not feel he was ready. That LCL was just not in position for him to play a live game."

Cousins might not be RG3, but he was efficient, accurate and only made one major mistake - an early interception to set up Cleveland's first TD.

If the Browns thought they were getting a break with Cousins, he proved to be as challenging to stop as Griffin.

"This isn't my first rodeo," Cousins said. "I did play a lot of football in the Big Ten. We started slow, but you've got to have character to dig deep. We didn't get spooked by a slow start."

Cousins' second TD pass to Hankerson gave the Redskins a 24-14 lead. As Cousins came to the sideline, Griffin gave him a fist bump and then sat on the bench with his backup, who for the past two weeks has shown he too can lead the Redskins.

Before the game, Griffin gave Cousins some advice.

"I talked to him about being cool, calm and collected and not to freak out," Griffin said. "He did a good job of staying poised and staying confident in there."

NOTES: With his two rushing TDs, Richardson broke Hall of Famer Jim Brown's 55-year-old team rookie record. Brown had nine in 1957. ... Redskins K Kai Forbath made a 44-yard field goal and is 15 of 15, one shy of the NFL record to start a career set by Garrett Hartley. ... Morris has nine TDs rushing, passing Skip Hicks (1998) for the most by a Redskins rookie. ... Shanahan said OT Tyler Polumbus has a concussion. ... Shanahan did not have any updates on injuries to LB Lorenzo Alexander (shoulder) or OL Will Montgomery (knee). ... Browns S T.J. Ward injured his knee.

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© 2012 by STATS LLC and Associated Press.
Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

Another impressive win for the Skins....5 straight, good for first place in the NFC East with 2 left.  The good, bad, and more.

Good:

1.  Organizational win. There used to be organizational losses after losses but now there are organziational wins.  Today may have been Mike Shanahan's best moment in Washington.  His personnel decisions of the past few years were all over this one.  As many as 11 of his draft choices from the last 3 years contributed....most in a major way.  Trent Williams and Perry Riley from 2011.  Kerrigan, Jenkins, Hankerson, Paul, and Royster from 2011.  And none more than the one that drew the most scrutiny, Kirk Cousins, the 4th-rounder from this past draft who most thought was unnecessary.  His two biggest offseason free agent acquistions (Garcon and Morgan) were major contributors and have been.  His coordinators (Kyle and Haslett) were superior to the competition today.  They're on a roll with a chance to do something big this year and they're young....really young.

2.  Kyle's playcalling. After going 0 for their first 4 drives, Kyle realized that they had to throw it and throw it on first and 2nd down.  The bootleg must have been run 15 times in this game with the quick-strike play-action throw called another 10-12 times.  An amazing adjustment when he figured out that the run-game would not produce per usual and incredible that it was so effective without the running game working.  After the dismal start, he got aggressive and stayed that way to the tune of 38 points.  It was also interesting that they ran last year's offense much more than this year's offense.  The "Pistol" formation was absent except on one play and they ran only one, maybe two read-options.  Why?  Not sure, but two things were clear.  One, they didn't run the ball very well without it and two, they clearly thought Cousins was more comfortable running their base offense primarily.

3.  Kirk Cousins. Those that didn't like the Redskins spending a 4th-round pick on another quarterback....sit down.  After a shaky start 1 for 6 start, Cousins when 25 of 31 the rest of the way.  His play-action throws, especially the bootlegs, loosened up a Cleveland defense that stopped the run and got good pass rush early.  Cousins, like RG3, is talented.  He can make all the throws, can run it a little too.  But like RG3, he definitely benefits from a coaching staff that knows quarterbacks and knows offense.

4.  The Defense. Cleveland is the weakest offensive opponent they've played in a while but still, the defense did a solid job all day long.  There were a few plays that they'd like back (the Benjamin TD pass in particular) but it's a defense that's getting better.  They stopped the run, got good pass-rush pressure,  deflected multiple passes, and picked off two passes.  The Jackson pick set the tone in what would become a dominant 2nd half.  The Skins played everyone on defense and their freshness paid off.

5.  D'Angelo Hall. I'm going to single him out because he takes so much heat from so many but he played well.  He was all over the field as a tackler, as a cover-corner, as a cover-safety, and as a special-teamer on kick coverage.

6.  Special teams. Rocca and Forbath solid.  Kick and punt coverage very good with the exception of one kickoff return.  Big hits by Alexander on Sp. teams is a given each week.

Bad:

1.  Another long touchdown pass allowed. DJ Johnson burned in man coverage on 3rd and 7 by Benjamin.  Bad play for the Skins because they went from being in total control up 17 with 10 to go to a game that was once again in play.

2.  Garcon 15-yard penalty. It wasn't the spin but the taunting with the spin that drew the flag.  It'd be nice if they could make the catch, toss the ball to the ref, and get back to the huddle to get ready for the next play.

More:

1.  Casserly said that the Skins can perhaps pull in two 2nd-round choices if they choose to trade Cousins in the offseason.  I don't think there's a chance they'll trade him so soon especially without another back-up they're comfortable with.

2.  Martz said the decision on RG3 was made Wednesday.

2.  Redskins fumbled twice and didn't lose any of them continuing a trend of now recovering 18 of their 24 fumbles.

3.  I thought the challenge on the Garcon play was worthwhile.  It looked like a catch.

One of the most dramatic wins in recent Skins' history.  The good, bad, and more.

Good:

1.  2nd-half defense. What a turnaround after a dismal first half.  Seven 2nd-half/OT possessions....3 punts, 2 turnovers, 7 total points.  They got better pressure on Flacco and did a better job against the run.  The two forced-turnovers were really big.  Baltimore was moving on both drives.  Jackson got the forced fumble with the Ravens at midfield on their first drive of the 3rd quarter.  Kerrigan's pressure led to the Fletcher INT with the Ravens at the Skins' 11.  After a lights-out first half, Flacco was forced into mistakes in the 2nd half that really impacted the final result.  The Kerrigan/Fletcher play in particular was all on Flacco for holding the ball on what was obviously a 5 blocking 6 situation.

2.  Kai Forbath's Field Goals. 14-14 for the season, 9 of them over 43 yards and a huge game-winner in OT.  Now, with that said, his kickoffs aren't very good and the kick after the game-tying touchdown/2-pt conversion was so close to being a play that cost them the game.  Barely into the end zone even though Jacoby Jones protested.

3.  Richard Crawford. Not a bad debut.  3 punt returns for an average of 33 per.  Still not sure why he didn't outrun the punter for the touchdown but what a huge play.

4.  Kirk Cousins. He comes on a 3rd and 6 with the game on the line and makes a throw that draws a P.I.  Then, his 2nd entrance into the game comes on a 2nd and 20 with the game on the line and he goes 2 for 2 with a touchdown to Garcon, then ties the game on a 2-pt conversion QB draw.  He was a clutch quarterback at Michigan State and what a job he did under pressure today.  No panic, totally under control, and a great 3rd and 5 touchdown pass to Garcon.  That's why they picked him.  You need at least two in the NFL, they got em in the draft.

5.  RG3. It wasn't his best game but I thought he was very effective early especially with the read-option (which sliced/diced Baltimore's defense on the first two drives en route to setting an NFL first-quarter best this year with 186 total yards) but he missed a few things too.  An early 3rd and 7 to a wide-open Garcon was thrown poorly.  The 3rd and short option pitch to Morris was a bad pitch.  Morris would've easily gotten the first down.  I know this will sound nuts after the injury but I thought he could've run more on the read-option and the same from the pocket.  Still, on one leg, he made two big-time throws that got them to within striking range.  The 15-yarder to Moss and the 22-yarder to Garcon were monster plays on the final drive and he couldn't step into either throw.  Both throws were all arm.

6.  Punt team. Sav Rocca had a very good day and the punt coverage team did a very good job on Jones.

Bad:

1.  RG3's injury. Can't wait to hear those complaining about him running the ball blame this one on the Shanahans but as was the case in the Atlanta game, it happened on a pass-play scramble, not a called run.

2.  1st-half defense. It was bad and they were lucky it wasn't worse.  They couldn't stop the run, they couldn't rush the passer, they couldn't cover.  D-Hall was beaten like a drum and it looked like Madieu Williams was constantly out of position.  Flacco was 10-13 and 2 of the misses were his fault.  He underthrew an open Torrey Smith that could've been a touchdown.  Rice and company rushed 14 times for 91 yards.  They only had the ball for 12:32 yet rolled up 218 yards.  Not a good half for the Skins at all but not all that unusual either.

3.  Drive-killing mistakes on offense. Penalties in the first half hurt.  Morris' fumble cost them 7 pts.  There were key dropped passes including Moss' catchable deep ball and Garcon's dropped 3rd and 3 in the 4th quarter.

4.  Skins drop-back pass protection. We've seen it all season-long but they really struggle when they're in obvious pass situations.  They throw it effectively out of the read-option look and first-down play-action, not when pass is obvious and expected.

More:

1.  The Garcon spot on that 2nd qtr catch/run was correct.  His knee was down short of the marker.

2.  Niles Paul's fumble was correctly reviewed and overturned.

3.  RG3 took a helmet-to-helmet hit on a scramble run in the 4th qtr that was missed.

4.  The 3rd and short option call by Kyle was a good call, bad execution.

5.  I was surprised that Baltimore didn't take a shot with 26 seconds left and one timeout in regulation and at the same time didn't understand what they were doing at the end of the first half throwing the ball with clearly no intention of trying to get into FG range.

Latest 53-man roster guess.

Offense

QB--Robert Griffin III, Rex Grossman, Kirk Cousins

RB--Evan Royster, Tim Hightower, Alfred Morris-- Helu Jr to IR? Just a guess but I'm still not 100% sure on Hightower's health either. I think it's overly optimistic to think Morris would make it through waivers and be available for practice squad.

FB--Darrell Young

TE--Fred Davis, Chris Cooley, Niles Paul, Logan Paulson-- Cooley or Briscoe? My gut says Cooley for now.

WR--Pierre Garcon, Josh Morgan, Santana Moss, Leonard Hankerson, Brandon Banks, Aldrick Robinson-- still convinced there's no chance Banks gets cut. Still not ruling out Briscoe as a 7th receiver over a 4th tight end.

OL--Trent Williams, Kory Lichtensteiger, Wil Montgomery, Chris Chester, Tyler Polumbus, Maurice Hurt, Willie Smith, Adam Gettis, Josh LeRibeus--I think Black has a chance but I've got him out for now. Compton to the practice squad.

Defense

NT--Barry Cofield, Chris Baker

DE--Adam Carriker, Stephen Bowen, Jarvis Jenkins, Darrion Scott-- a hunch on Scott over Golsten.

OLB--Brian Orakpo, Ryan Kerrigan, Rob Jackson, Chris Wilson-- Wilson or White?? White's injury couldn't have come at a worse time...edge to Wilson for now.

ILB--London Fletcher, Perry Riley, Lorenzo Alexander, Keenan Robinson-- Robinson over Kehl but it's close.

CB--DeAngelo Hall, Josh Wilson, Cedric Griffin, Richard Crawford, Kevin Barnes-- I know Griffin has looked shaky but he's a vet and there's not enough pushing him.

S--Brandon Merriweather, Madieu Williams, DeJon Gomes, Tanard Jackson, Reed Doughty-- Doughty survives again. Bernstein to the practice squad.

SP Teams

K-Graham Gano-- gut says they stick with Gano although a couple of missed kicks in the final 2 preseason games would be lethal.

P-Sav Rocca

LS-Nick Sundberg

*Injured Reserve

Roy Helu Jr.

*PUP

Jamal Brown

Latest 53-man roster guess.

Offense

QB--Robert Griffin III, Rex Grossman, Kirk Cousins

RB--Evan Royster, Tim Hightower, Alfred Morris-- Helu Jr to IR? Just a guess but I'm still not 100% sure on Hightower's health either. I think it's overly optimistic to think Morris would make it through waivers and be available for practice squad.

FB--Darrell Young

TE--Fred Davis, Chris Cooley, Niles Paul, Logan Paulson-- Cooley or Briscoe? My gut says Cooley for now.

WR--Pierre Garcon, Josh Morgan, Santana Moss, Leonard Hankerson, Brandon Banks, Aldrick Robinson-- still convinced there's no chance Banks gets cut. Still not ruling out Briscoe as a 7th receiver over a 4th tight end.

OL--Trent Williams, Kory Lichtensteiger, Wil Montgomery, Chris Chester, Tyler Polumbus, Maurice Hurt, Willie Smith, Adam Gettis, Josh LeRibeus--I think Black has a chance but I've got him out for now. Compton to the practice squad.

Defense

NT--Barry Cofield, Chris Baker

DE--Adam Carriker, Stephen Bowen, Jarvis Jenkins, Darrion Scott-- a hunch on Scott over Golsten.

OLB--Brian Orakpo, Ryan Kerrigan, Rob Jackson, Chris Wilson-- Wilson or White?? White's injury couldn't have come at a worse time...edge to Wilson for now.

ILB--London Fletcher, Perry Riley, Lorenzo Alexander, Keenan Robinson-- Robinson over Kehl but it's close.

CB--DeAngelo Hall, Josh Wilson, Cedric Griffin, Richard Crawford, Kevin Barnes-- I know Griffin has looked shaky but he's a vet and there's not enough pushing him.

S--Brandon Merriweather, Madieu Williams, DeJon Gomes, Tanard Jackson, Reed Doughty-- Doughty survives again. Bernstein to the practice squad.

SP Teams

K-Graham Gano-- gut says they stick with Gano although a couple of missed kicks in the final 2 preseason games would be lethal.

P-Sav Rocca

LS-Nick Sundberg

*Injured Reserve

Roy Helu Jr.

*PUP

Jamal Brown

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) Kirk Cousins had an out-of-this-world second half. Now if he could only get a decent locker.

Just in case he needed any reminder of his place in the pecking order among the Washington Redskins rookie quarterbacks, all Cousins had to do on Monday was walk up to his small, metal, temporary stall in the middle of the locker room. It's only a few feet from Robert Griffin III's more spacious, permanent spot against the wall.

"This is Robert's team," Cousins said. "This is Robert's opportunity. The coaches have made that very clear, and it's my job to do the best I can in my situation and with my opportunities, and that's what I'm trying to do."

For now, those opportunities are guaranteed to come only in August - during preseason games, mostly after Griffin and the rest of the starters are done for the night. Mopping up during Saturday's 33-31 loss to the Chicago Bears, Cousins played the second half and put up some eye-popping numbers: 18 for 23, 264 yards, three touchdowns, a 154.1 rating.

"Preseason games, right now, are my Super Bowl," Cousins said.

And it shows. Cousins said he told his fellow backups at halftime: "Let's go down swinging." He then led a spirited rally that nearly won the game after the Redskins trailed by 20 in the third quarter.

"We're all fighting for recognition," he said. "When we're playing in the second half, we have a lot to play for, regardless of the score. And I told the guys: `We're working right now. We can sleep on the plane. We can sleep tomorrow. We're working right now, and I want a good tempo at the line of scrimmage. I want our offensive line to be the aggressors and wear down that defense.' And I feel we were able to do that."

Cousins threw a school-record 66 touchdown passes at Michigan State, but he had to recalibrate his NFL thinking when the Redskins (No. 25 in the AP Pro32) selected him in the fourth round of the draft in April. Washington had already picked Griffin at No. 2 overall and declared the Heisman Trophy winner from Baylor as the new face of the franchise.

So, no matter how he plays in these August games, Cousins is pegged to spend the next few regular seasons holding a clipboard on the sideline while RGIII does his thing.

"I have a long view in mind," said Cousins, who signed a standard four-year rookie contract. "I've said it from the start that if I'm someday going to be as good as I hope to be, then I'll get an opportunity. And if I'm not good enough, then I won't. But I shouldn't get that opportunity if I'm not good enough. I need to develop day-in and day-out, get better and better, and if at some point the coaches here, the coaches elsewhere, feel like they see something in me that merits being a starting quarterback, I'll get that opportunity."

In that sense, Cousins can draw inspiration from players such as Aaron Rodgers, a first-round pick who toiled for three years as Brett Favre's backup with the Green Bay Packers before getting the starting job and eventually leading the team to a Super Bowl title. The upside to such a career path is that Cousins quietly has time to develop better pro habits - improved footwork, how best to read blitzes, etc. - while Griffin will have a very public trial-by-fire over 16-game seasons.

"Part of being a professional is that I don't have to go to chemistry class in the morning," said Cousins, who graduated in December with a degree in kinesiology. "I'm here and I'm working on my fundamentals, and I think you can become a better quarterback as a result."

While Cousins isn't in the running for the starting job, Shanahan has said that Cousins and veteran Rex Grossman will contend for the No. 2 spot. Still, it would take a great leap of faith for a coach to go with rookies as his top two quarterbacks.

It's also worth reiterating that Cousins didn't have to face a first-string pass rush or secondary during his stellar performance against the Bears. NFL history is flush with quarterbacks who put up good numbers against players who didn't make the final cuts at the end of preseason.

"I think you can also look at the guys around you," Cousins said. "I'm playing with rookie offensive linemen. I'm playing with rookie wide receivers, rookie running backs. If I'm playing in the first quarter, I'm playing with veteran wide receivers, veteran linemen, veteran running backs, so there's a tradeoff there."

"But you're absolutely right," he added. "I didn't play against Brian Urlacher, and I understand that."

Follow Joseph White on Twitter: http://twitter.com/JGWhiteAP

Online: http://bigstory.ap.org/NFL-Pro32 and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

Updated August 20, 2012

© 2012 by STATS LLC and Associated Press.
Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

Quarterback performance is what everyone will be focused on after tonight but it's so hard to evaluate the QB position in preseason when there's little thought given to attacking the other team's weaknesses, i.e game-planning. With that understood, I'll take a shot at it anyway as part of the good, bad, and more.

Good:

1. Kirk Cousins: You've done something right when you throw 3 touchdown passes in a half on 18-23 for 264 yards. Who it came against (i.e. back-ups) matters for sure but Cousins looks capable of making a run at the backup quarterback spot.

2. Alfred Morris: His first two carries locked up a spot on the final 53-man roster if he didn't have one already. He's strong, decisive, and has the kind of vision required to be a good zone-scheme runner. He looked like Ryan Torrain on his first run.

3. Brandon Banks: If he's not the kick and punt returner in New Orleans on September 9th then he better be injured. In addition to the 91-yd punt return, he also averaged 30.0 yds on his two kick returns. Who cares if he can't play wide receiver. His big-play ability on special teams is too important to cut. Also, he can be used in other ways offensively out of the backfield.

4. Ryan Kerrigan: He got pressure on most pass plays and his run-stopping was solid. I'd be shocked if he doesn't have a huge year.

Bad:

1. First-teamers. A rough night for both the offense and defense. Pass-protection hurt the offense and pass-coverage/poor tackling killed the defense. Additionally, RG3 didn't help on a couple of those pass pressures by turning into the pressure instead of feeling it and bouncing away from it. With that said, I thought his best play of the night was the 3rd and 5 run where he did feel the pressure well and made something good out of bad.

2. Injuries. Orakpo and Merriweather went down and MRI's are pending. The Redskins need some good news on both fronts.

3. Dropped INT's and Passes. Like last week, a couple of dropped INT's at least. Wilson and Kehl had easy ones slip through their hands. Kehl's would have given the Skins a win. Garcon dropped a would-be first down ball early. The throw was a bit behind him but it should've been caught.

More:

1. Rackers' miss from 54 yards out looked a lot like Gano's misses from similar distances last year. The ball was kicked well, but just barely missed going through. The Redskins need what the Bears have...a kicker like Robbie Gould who is totally dependable from any distance, in any weather, on any field. He's huge for the Bears, a team that hasn't always been able to put the ball in the end zone but almost always comes away with points.

2. Jarvis Jenkins looked good. He's a pocket-collapser.

3. Niles Paul's performance in the 2nd half was huge for him after another drop in the first half. His blocking looked solid.

4. Not sure why the Redskins didn't call a quick timeout after their first completion on the final drive of the game. They lost roughly 10 seconds.

5. The 34-yd pass interference penalty against Chicago's Tillman against Garcon was an awful call.

Nothing says the first preseason game more than 13 total points, 23 penalties, and 17 punts. It was a hard watch after RG3 left the game but here's my good, bad, and more anyway.

Good:

1. RG3: Forget the #'s which were good, the biggest takeaway for me was how comfortable and confident he looked. His best play was his 20-yd throw to Garcon after he looked off his first two progressions. Fourteen total snaps and none of em required him to run or extend the play much. Credit to the o-line and his ability to get the ball out quickly for that.

2. Pass Rush: Kerrigan and Orakpo early, Rob Jackson later.

3. Starting O-Line: Griffin went untouched on all six pass attempts and the running game got going on the one touchdown drive.

4. Garcon: Yards after catch has been a problem for years, Garcon will provide it. The excessive celebration penalty was unnecessary.

5. Cousins: His numbers weren't great but probably due to the revolving cast of teammates around him. Like RG3, he played with a high level of confidence. When he wasn't rushed, he threw the ball pretty well.

Bad:

1. Rex.  He was off throwing the ball even though he was pressured much more than Griffin.

2. Dropped INT's.  At least three by my count, Merriweather had a chance for an early one.

More:

1. Replacement refs struggled. NFL needs to fix this and soon.

2. C. Baker, R. Jackson, A. Morris, C. Wilson, J. Wilson, and M. White were a few of the others that made plays.

3. Banks was targeted a bunch but only caught two balls for 7 yards. Not sure if the lack of productivity was due to his route running or the throws from Rex and Cousins. I think more of the latter.

4. Hope Trent Williams' foot is okay.

5. Rackers vs Gano has to wait at least another week.

ASHBURN, Va. – The Washington Redskins announced today that they have signed 2012 fourth-round draft pick quarterback Kirk Cousins (102nd overall). Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Cousins (6-3, 214) played collegiately at Michigan State, where he appeared in 45 games, starting 39 of his last 40. For his collegiate career, he completed 723-of-1,128 passes (64.1 percent) for 9,131 yards with a school-record 66 touchdown passes. In addition, he established a Michigan State career record with a 146.08 pass efficiency rating. A three-year team captain, Cousins was only the second player in Spartan history to be named team captain as a sophomore and the first since 1949 to earn that honor. Academically, Cousins is one of only 16 players in Michigan State history to earn Academic All-Big Ten Conference honors during all four collegiate seasons.

Cousins, 23, was born on Aug. 19, 1988. He attended Holland Christian H.S. in Holland, Mich., where he earned All-Ottawa-Kent Conference honors in football, basketball and baseball. In 2006, Cousins was an All-State and Academic All-State honorable mention choice by the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association, setting 35 school game-, season- and career-records en route to being named Area Player of the Year.

The Washington Redskins shocked the football world on Saturday, when they selected Tom Compton in the sixth round of the NFL Draft.

I'm only kidding. While nobody in DC had probably ever heard of Compton, he fits the athletic mold that the Redskins offensive lineman usually require, much like 5th round pick Adam Gettis does.

The real shock (should it have been?) came with their first selection in the 4th round, drafting Kirk Cousins out of Michigan State. 

I will admit, when we first got advance of the selection, about a minute before it was announced, we were live on ESPN 980 from FedEx Field and Redskins Park, and we were all surprised.  I posted on twitter, something to the effect of "this is going to be a shocker." It was, but maybe as we think about it, that was wrong.

Here's the only thing I am shocked about, a few days later. A fan base that has been starved for anybody including Santa Claus to be their quarterback, is now frustrated, and in some circles, pissed off that Mike Shanahan and the Redskins 'wasted' a pick on Kirk Cousins. All of this, when they could have had the "messiah,' offensive lineman, Bobby Massie.

It's just pure and total nonsense. Anyone in the media, that is angered by this --  or extremely critical of the decision, locally or nationally, simply doesn't understand how the world works. Especially, the football world.

Robert Griffin III is the number one quarterback, no questions asked. There will be a competition for that spot in training camp, with Rex Grossman pushing Griffin, but in reality, the competition shouldn't really be one at all. That's no offense to Rex, but the Redskins did not trade the future for the now, to sit on the bench in New Orleans and beyond.

Kirk Cousins, will make the 53-man roster and will be the third quarterback (The Redskins only carried 2 last year plus practice squad QB, Jonathan Crompton), but will be one of seven inactives every week in 2012, assuming Griffin III and Grossman are completely healthy.

That's it. This decision was NOT for 2012. As we know, all good organizations, and the Redskins are trying to get to that point, draft by value and by their board, as opposed to pure need. The beauty of the Cousins selection is this - IT WAS A NEED!!!

How can anybody argue that a solid, bright, competitive quarterback that the Redskins brass had ranked as a 2nd round prospect (from what I've heard) is a wasted pick, when Rex Grossman is only under contract for one year, and John Beck was going to be released right after the draft, as we had reported in mid-April?

Just doesn't make sense. Sorry. The Redskins addressed every one of their needs, in some way, with the exception of a pass catching tight end. I would  be much more upset about this, as opposed to Washington making sure that the quarterback situation is in pretty darn good hands for the next 4 years plus.

Kevin Sheehan of the "Sports Fix" on ESPN-980  asked on Friday, if the Redskins should take another QB before the draft ended. I said, emphatically, YES. I said if Richmond, VA native Russell Wilson was available in the sixth round, "hell yeah."  I didn't think  Cousins would be available in the fourth round, and Wilson would be gone before him, so when the Redskins saw that...BAM.

Stop complaining. This isn't anything about race, as that moron Skip Bayless is trying to create. This is what a good organization does. A week ago, in most eyes, the Redskins had NO quarterbacks.  Today they have one star, and two more than capable, options if something drastic were to happen.

****

About the star, as in Robert Griffin III. ESPN 980 through two league sources has obtained contract information for what his rookie deal with the Washington Redskins will look like, with little or no variance.

Per the league sources, the NFL released the 'rookie allocation numbers' today to determine rookie contracts.  Griffin's first contract under the current CBA will be four years. and worth a total of 21.12 million dollars, with that amount "fully guaranteed."

Griffin III's actual signing bonus according to the sources, will be 13.8 million, again fully guaranteed.  For comparison under the current rookie system, last year's # 2 overall pick, Von Miller of the Denver Broncos received 13. 77 million as a signing bonus and had a 21.0 million payment.

As ESPN 980 first reported in mid-April, Griffin III's salary cap figure was expected to be about 4.0 million with a 5% increase factored in, year over year. Instead, Griffin III's first contract will cost the Redskins 3.840 million under the 2012 salary cap.

The breakdown is not a simple across the board, 21.12 million divided by four years.

As for Cousins, his fourth round selection (7th overall), carried a 494,000 cap figure for the first year of the CBA, last year for an equivalent pick. The expected cap figure is 508,000 in 2012. 

If you factor in Rex Grossman's reported one-year, 1.3 million dollar contract, assuming he makes the Week 1 roster, which barring catastrophic injury -- he surely will, the Redskins will be spending approximately 5.8 million dollars of their 120.6 M (not including the 18 M cap penalty)  salary cap on three quarterbacks in 2012.

Overall, the Redskins rookie allocation pool is 7.48 million under the salary cap for the sum of their draft picks.

Chris Russell // RussellC@Redskins.com // SFtheRooster@yahoo.com // www.twitter.com/russellmania980 // www.twitter.com/espnradio980 // www.facebook.com (Chris Russell or ESPN 980)