Many NFL quarterbacks must make their case they belong on the job

After an NFL off-season filled with investigations and litigation, the 2015 season begins in a familiar way.

Quarterbacks are still on trial.

From Jay Cutler in Chicago, to Andy Dalton in Cincinnati, to Robert Griffin III in Washington, to Colin Kaepernick in San Francisco, the pressure is on field generals to prove they still have it — or if they ever really had it at all.

For many, this is a make-or-break season, a time to show they deserve one of 32 coveted jobs, or whether it’s time for them to finally step aside and fade into the background.

Some have already been told to take a seat. EJ Manuel, the only quarterback selected in the first round of the 2013 draft, just lost his starting job in Buffalo to the little-known Tyrod Taylor. Even though Manuel looks the part, and has played well at times this summer, his consistency has been an issue throughout his career.

“EJ’s certainly got the big arm, and he’s a great human being,” said Steve Tasker, the legendary Buffalo Bills special-teamer turned CBS broadcaster. “One thing that’s characterized his game, I’m going to use a golf analogy: He’ll make a lot of pars, and then all of a sudden he throws up a quadruple-bogey.”

The second quarterback selected in that 2013 draft — 23 picks after Manuel — has likewise hit a big patch of turbulence. Geno Smith is barely hanging on with the New York Jets. His preseason was cut short when a since-released teammate slugged him, breaking his jaw in multiple places. Ryan Fitzpatrick was promoted to the starting job while Smith tries to pick up the pieces of his career.

In Washington, the Redskins have benched Griffin, who was once thought to not only be the future of the franchise but the future of the game itself.

“We feel like at this time Kirk Cousins gives us the best chance to win,” Redskins Coach Jay Gruden said in revealing the starting job wouldn’t go to Griffin. “It’s Kirk’s team.”

It wasn’t so long ago that dual-threat quarterbacks, and in particular Griffin, were tearing off big chunks of real estate with their feet and tying defenses in knots. Now, there’s a question about whether there’s room for those types of quarterbacks on the roster.

Less than two years after picking him 22nd overall, for instance, the Cleveland Browns are still trying to figure out how Johnny Manziel fits into their plans.

Kaepernick, once the epitome of a dual threat, spent a significant amount of the off-season fine-tuning his skills with former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner. If the exhibition season is an accurate indicator, the 49ers quarterback remains a work in progress. Through three preseason games, he had completed five of 13 passes for 40 yards, with no touchdowns or interceptions, but three sacks, including one for a safety.

“There’s not any concern on this team,” Kaepernick said after the third exhibition game, the most meaningful for starters, at Denver. “That’s what the preseason is for, is to work those things out and see who we have in different positions. So that’s what we’re doing and we’re working to make sure we’re ready for the regular season.”

For Dalton, the regular season isn’t a problem. He’s directed the Bengals to the playoffs in each of his four years. But he’s got warning-track power, going 0-4 in postseason starts with six interceptions, one touchdown, 12 sacks, and an anemic passer rating of 57.8, down from 85.2 in the regular season.

If the Bengals have another one of those years when they play well enough to reach the postseason, then quietly fade to black, the question will be inevitable: Is Dalton the man to get it done?

“I think the key word is distrust,” said ESPN’s Mo Eggers, a Cincinnati radio host. “I think most people understand that Andy Dalton has a lot of really positive attributes. He’s a very accomplished regular-season quarterback.

“But this franchise at this time is judged by: Do they win a game in the playoffs? Nobody trusts Andy Dalton to do that, and frankly, nobody trusts [Coach] Marvin Lewis to do that. There’s just distrust and apprehension.”

When Cutler arrived in Chicago from Denver in 2009, the Bears were hoping he’d be the modern-day version of Sid Luckman, who led them to four NFL championships back in the leather-helmet days.

Those expectations are long gone, and Cutler, beginning with yet another coaching staff, seems to be perpetually unhappy. Same goes for the people around him.

Not surprisingly, his popularity in the Bears’ hometown has been in steady decline. According to a recent report by Crain’s Chicago Business, Cutler’s recent Q scores show he’s not well liked.

In a recent survey cited by the publication, 34% of respondents familiar with Cutler rated him as “fair” or “poor” in terms of likability. The company that conducted the study, Q Scores, said Cutler’s “negative Q score” is more than twice the average of 18% for all sports personalities and athletes. Two seasons ago, Cutler’s number was 23%.

Of course, winning cures many ills, so Cutler has another chance to reverse that trend.

ESPN’s Jon Gruden, older brother of the Redskins coach and himself a Super Bowl-winning coach, said the pressure is growing on Miami quarterback Ryan Tannehill, as well.

“This is Year 4 of [Coach] Joe Philbin, Year 4 of Ryan Tannehill, and it’s time,” Gruden said. “With the turmoil in New England, new coach and quarterback in Buffalo, the quarterback of the Jets has a broken jaw, the stars are aligned for Tannehill to bust through the door. I’m counting on Miami winning the AFC East this year.”

In Philadelphia, Sam Bradford will be looking to redefine himself too, or at least recapture the success he had at his best times, before consecutive knee injuries ended his 2013 and ’14 seasons with St. Louis.

The Rams traded Bradford to the Eagles as part of a deal that sent Philadelphia’s Nick Foles to St. Louis. This is also a “prove-it” season for Foles. He was unbelievable in 2013, playing in 13 games (10 starts) and throwing 27 touchdowns with two passes intercepted. He crashed to Earth last season and produced far more human numbers: eight starts, 13 touchdowns, 10 interceptions.

Foles had a year left on his contract when the Rams signed him, prompting St. Louis to sign him to a two-year extension. They envision him as their answer at the position. So this season is crucial for him to prove he’s worthy of a long-term deal.

Jon Gruden said the constant churn in the coaching ranks has a major impact on the turnover at quarterback.

“It’s more complicated now with the way that coaches change teams, not just head coaches but some of these teams have five or six different offensive coordinators in the last six or seven years,” Gruden said. “It’s hard to develop a quarterback going that route. It’s also hard with this [collective bargaining agreement] that we have that limits a lot of the work that you can get done.”

But he warns about giving up on a quarterback too soon.

“Once Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, some of these veteran quarterbacks leave the game, we’re going to need a lot of these young guys to step up,” Gruden said. “So let’s not pull the trigger and give up on them too quickly. But they do take time. Unfortunately, situations are making it harder and harder to develop them like we did years ago.”

The jury’s still out on these players. And if the quarterbacks don’t come through, there will be a lot more than 12 angry men.

sam.farmer@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATimesfarmer