Let’s rewind back to 2011 for a second. A young man by the name of Robert Griffin III was putting the world on notice at Baylor in Waco, Texas. He would go onto win the Heisman Trophy that year after a season that saw him account for 47 touchdowns (37 touchdown passes and 10 rushing). In January of 2012, he announced he was entering the NFL Draft. Three months later, the Washington Redskins drafted him with the second overall pick and he took the league by storm again. It’s been a rough patch for RGIII. He’s been battling injury after injury since 2012 and after that unfortunate knee injury, he hasn’t really been the same quarterback. He was signed by the Cleveland Browns to a two-year deal in 2016 and helped lead them to their only win in a full calendar year. He’s back and he’s been signed to a one-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens.
When he’s healthy and he’s being used the correct way, he’s a very productive quarterback. After the knee injuries, coaches were trying to use him as a pocket quarterback which I can understand because you don’t want him to further injure the knee anymore, but that’s now who Robert Griffin III is. He needs to be able to maneuver in the open field, move the pocket and make throws on the run. He can throw from the pocket when it’s presented to him, but when he has the room to move around and make a play happen with his feet, he will take advantage of the opportunity. His rookie season will always stand out to me because, from the first game he started, he had an immediate impact on the Washington Redskins. Rookies never come in with command and control of their offense, but he did and because of him, he led the Redskins to their first division title that season for the first time since 2012. The turning point was the knee injury he suffered in December that season and a few weeks later, he re-injures it and since then, he hasn’t been the same guy.
I wasn’t expecting the Ravens to sign anyone this off-season because they are usually quiet around free agency and they always look to build up their roster through the NFL Draft. We will all see how this will pan out in Baltimore.
