Rob Woodfork, wtop.com
Finally. It’s official.
Even though we’ve known for close to two months that Robert Griffin III was the target when the Redskins traded four high draft choices for the Rams’ 2nd overall pick, we just needed to hear NFL commissioner Roger Goodell say the magic words.
“With the second pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Washington Redskins select quarterback Robert Griffin III from Baylor.”
Just like that, as if casting a spell to end a decades-old curse, D.C.’s long, arduous search for a franchise quarterback is over.
I know, I know… We’ve been down this path before. Some new flavor of the month hits town and we Redskins fans start booking tickets for (insert Super Bowl city here).
Dear reader, I’m here to tell you. This time it’s different.
You’ve seen RGIII’s numbers (and if not, here they are). You’ve read his story (and if not, here it is). Griffin is universally assumed to be the one to end the quarterback woes in Washington by folks who don’t necessarily see the world through Burgundy and Gold lenses. People with sterling reputations for evaluating talent (Mike Mayock, Bill Polian, Mel Kiper Jr, just to name a few) are completely sold on Griffin, and they have no horse in the race.
They should be. This “QB of the Future” wasn’t overdrafted like Patrick Ramsey and Jason Campbell were. This isn’t like when the ‘Skins forced the issue with old guys like Jeff George and Donovan McNabb. In our heart of hearts, I think we had a notion those brews would not go down smoothly.
We were well aware that mediocre stopgap options, like Shane Matthews and Rex “The Human Turnover” Grossman, would end badly.
There’s no such apprehension or hand-ringing this time. It seems Redskins Nation is all in on RGIII. His skill set, his personality, his upbringing — it all fits this team and this community like a glove.
So forget what McNabb thinks. His cheap-shot remarks made him come off like the crabby ex who’s bitter and alone after the lover that scorned him moved on to bigger and better things.
Pay no mind to the anonymous scouts who said RGIII is too selfish and too “Vick-like” to enjoy long-term success in the Nation’s Capital.
It’ll take more than a jaded ex or Internet tough guys to tear asunder what Griffin and the ‘Skins are building. Thursday was wedding day for RGIII and the Redskins. The two are now one. Through better or worse, sickness or health.
Griffin and the Redskins are D.C.’s new power couple. Simply put, these two were made for each other. Mike Shanahan’s offense calls for a strong-armed signal caller with a knack for the big play. Griffin needs direction from someone with a reputation for building Hall-of-Fame passers with tremendous mobility. “Chocolate City” has been starved for not just a star athlete at football’s most important position, but a face of the franchise to further what Doug Williams started.
If you created a franchise QB in a lab somewhere — one specifically catered to Shanahan, the Redskins, and the city of Washington — you probably couldn’t put together a better signal caller than Griffin.
I’m no quarterback guru, but I play one on the radio. At the risk of jinxing the best QB prospect to hit Washington post-Reagan, the only way I see RGIII’s talent going unfulfilled is if he gets hurt. Otherwise, his mental and physical makeup provides us with about as close to a sure thing as NFL football will allow.
Yes, RGIII comes to town with questions. Yes, he has unusual socks. But he also brings something this franchise hasn’t had in a long time.
Legitimate hope.
Follow WTOP on Twitter.
(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
