The ballad of Robert Griffin III has gone from exciting to divisive. Now it's just sad.
The Washington Football Team's 2012 first-round pick hints strongly he wants to come home after a failed career led to no bidders and a gig in the ESPN booth. He has tweeted for the team to sign him. He went on a national podcast to plead his case.
Please stop.
It's so hard for failed athletes to move on to regular lives. After winning a Heisman Trophy and even having a statue raised in his honor outside Baylor's stadium, it's not easy just going to work, even if it's on national TV.
But RGIII's passive-aggressive plea for attention is just sad. He deserves to treat himself better than this. His fans deserve better than to see this.
Certainly, Griffin has a major case of what might have been. The arrival alone was amazing. No first-rounder ever arrived to such expectations ever. The late Steve Guback, who covered the team from the late 1950s until the Washington Star's 1981 closing, saw nothing comparing to the Beatle-like mania of Griffin arriving. Neither have I since the 1980s.
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Training camp practices were three hours of non-stop "R-G-3!" screaming by fans to the point the passer apologized to teammates over getting all of the attention. But then, teammates were calling him "Black Jesus" in minicamp. Veterans rarely embrace a rookie as a leader, but everyone saw something special.
Griffin took Washington to the playoffs with a sensational rookie year. Washington seemed to have its first post-Super Bowls superstar. And then it all went bad. Griffin was injured in the playoffs. The coach, medical staff and player all blamed each other. Griffin's relationship with coach Mike Shanahan quickly became toxic.
By 2015, Griffin was out of Washington. He went 1-4 for Cleveland in 2016, was unsigned in 2017 and then spent three seasons as a reserve for Baltimore. Overall, Griffin was 16-26 and just 7-20 after his rookie year.
In the right situation, Griffin could have been a star. But, Washington wasn't it. Why he would mention returning is because there are still fans who believe RGIII was hurt more by circumstances and might be better than what the team has now.
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The problem is Griffin did nothing anywhere else so it wasn't just Washington. It was injuries, stubbornness to change and time that also conspired against him. Returning to Washington would create a civil war among fans and the team has long moved on from one of its bigger draft busts ever.
Griffin knows there's not a place for him in Washington. He just wants the attention and possibly the thrill of being RGIII again instead of Robert. There's seldom an athlete that leaves sports who doesn't miss it. Even Tom Brady will miss it when trading Super Bowls for Social Security.
If Griffin really thought there was a chance, he would have told an agent to quietly make inquiries. But coach Ron Rivera isn't even calling his old passer Cam Newton, and owner Dan Snyder is on his stadium search so there's no local backer for Griffin's return.
Griffin should embrace his next endeavor. Be a great TV analyst. Don't look back cause there's nothing to see here. Sadly, so few players can do so.
Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks.
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