The NFL tampering period gets started at 9 a.m. PT, at which point players can negotiate new contracts, but not sign them until Wednesday. One player who will be able to sign anywhere right away is now former Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III. The team released him on Monday, according to every media source out there. The team has not announced the move, but RG3 tweeted about it just a bit ago.
This is not breaking news, as the team acknowledged plans to release him weeks ago. They were trying to get some kind of compensation in a trade, but it was highly unlikely to happen. And so, he is now a free agent, and free to sign with anybody immediately.
Bleacher Report's Mike Freeman is reporting there are at least ten teams "giving Griffin a hard look". Freeman's source told him the Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns were the three most likely landing spots for the quarterback. Freeman did acknowledge RG3's final destination was likely a bit of guess-work.
There are quite a few teams looking for different kinds of quarterback options. The three teams mentioned above all have a definitive need at the position. Our own San Francisco 49ers could decide they want to look at RG3. A lot of that depends on the Colin Kaepernick situation, what Chip Kelly and the team think of Blaine Gabbert, and what the team thinks of this year's draft class.
However, there are a handful of other potential options. The Kansas City Chiefs seem like a strong possibility. There have been numerous reports this offseason about how much Andy Reid liked RG3 back in 2012. Alex Smith is the starter in Kansas City, but with Chase Daniel hitting free agency, maybe RG3 is prepared to go there and re-build things as part of a longer play.
If RG3 is adamant about competing for a starting opportunity in 2016, there are plenty of options, with the chance for more to open up. Teams that could join in the team's already mentioned include the Jets and Broncos. Maybe the Eagles add him for depth and as a potential replacement for Sam Bradford in 2017.
The point being, there are a lot of options. People have talked about how much sense he makes with Chip Kelly. He had a solid completion percentage in 2014 before he got hurt. He certainly can run and maneuver. Of course, he still has plenty of work in front of him to get back on track. The question now is when it happens. If the 49ers are going to be involved, we would need some resolution on the Colin Kaepernick situation. Other teams might be inclined to jump in quickly. My guess is RG3 signs somewhere sooner rather than later, but it's kind of unpredictable.