Following up on the ongoing story. ... According to Washington Post columnist Jason Reid, Jay Gruden's benching of Robert Griffin III should end any doubts about whether the Redskins are united behind their rookie head coach.

And after displaying the type of persuasive leadership the long-struggling franchise needs, Reid believes Gruden should floor the accelerator.

"It's time for Gruden to push for changes -- the hiring of a top-notch player-personnel official," Reid wrote, "a significant increase in Washington's scouting budget and granting more authority to the head coach in the player-selection process chief among them. These changes could help Gruden guide the Redskins out of their deep hole. By consensus-building to make the tough call on Griffin, he's demonstrated he's ready to do more."

It's highly unlikely the struggling quarterback will return next season, people within the organization tell Reid.

But Profootballtalk.com's Mike Florio reports that Griffin's absence from the starting lineup could be as short as one week, and it could last until the start of next season. Either way, the plan is to try to get Griffin back to being the player he was in 2012, when he took the league by storm (and kept defenses off balance) with a perfect mixture of accurate passing and explosive running ability.

Florio went on to explain the organization understands that Griffin has encountered a significant amount of adversity, most of which was beyond his control.

It doesn't mean Griffin is destined to return to what he was in 2012. But the organization isn't ready to give up on him.

In that regard, the organization includes Gruden. While his words suggest that Gruden is waging a battle to bench Griffin for good, the team believes Gruden wants Griffin to get better - and that Gruden is opting for candor instead of coddling as he tries to coax the most out of Griffin over the long haul.

By the start of the 2015 season, Washington's roster could look a lot different. Considerable dollars will be spent in free agency. The first-round draft pick won't belong to the Rams. And some of the players who have kept the team from being successful will be gone.

Despite the current feeding frenzy fueled by common sense and conventional wisdom that Griffin will be among the former members of the team by next season, Florio reports the plan really is to keep him around.

Unless that information is being spread as a ploy to salvage his trade value.