New Cleveland Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III saw his tenure as the franchise signal-caller in Washington fall apart, piece by piece, after an electrifying rookie season under then-head coach Mike Shanahan. After that Cinderella 2012 season though, Shanahan and RGIII seemed to drift further and further apart as RGIII's training and playbook preparation habits came into question and his health, following a knee injury at the end of his rookie year, deteriorated.
You'd expect that Shanahan, now out of the league, and RGIII, off to, well, different, pastures with the Browns, wouldn't exactly be on the best of terms considering all the media sniping and pointed questions over RGIII's usage that emerged toward the end of their shared time in Washington.
It seems you'd be wrong though.
"I would take him if I were you," Shanahan said recently, recounting what he'd told Los Angeles Rams head coach Jeff Fisher regarding RGIII this offseason. "... There's no way that this guy can't be successful if he goes back with the mindset he had as a rookie. Because he was so positive, he had charisma, he was one of our team leaders, and then after that injury, things started going in a different direction."
The injury that Shanahan is referencing actually came prior to Washington's single postseason contest against Seattle in 2012, but ultimately became the beginning of the end for Griffin's time with the Skins on that rainy day. Griffin had played relatively well to the midway point of the fourth quarter against the Seahawks, tossing 2 touchdowns to one interception. But on a muddy field, chasing a loose ball, Griffin's leg buckled, leaving the young quarterback and the hopes of Washington's fans lying prone on FedEx Field.
From there, things worsened by the day until Shanahan was fired in December 2013 and RGIII was released this offseason. Now though, it seems the two men are again on good terms.
Griffin heard about Shanahan's vote of confidence and even reached out to thank his former coach. Shanahan, in turn, stressed to RGIII that he should attempt to find a coaching staff and a team that knows how to utilize his talents in the correct manner.
"They've got to utilize your skills," Shanahan said. "You can't go to a place that is going to be strictly a dropback attack."
That raises an interesting question regarding RGIII's future though - yes, Browns head coach Hue Jackson has experience in a variety of offensive systems. But if Griffin, who struggled to operate as a dropback passer, doesn't possess the same kind of athleticism he did prior to the 2013 injury, will any team - the Browns or otherwise - really be able to find a way to use him to great effect again?
