Mike Shanahan and Robert Griffin III, by most accounts, had a difficult relationship together in Washington. It didn’t stop Shanahan from giving Griffin a good word when the quarterback was searching for a new job, though.
Shanahan told ESPN 980 in Washington D.C. that he’d recommended Griffin to the Los Angeles Rams, and he and Griffin had a good talk recently.
“I’d take him if I were you,” Shanahan told Rams coach Jeff Fisher via ESPN’s John Keim, according to Shanahan himself.
“Robert called me and wanted to thank me for saying such nice things,” Shanahan continued. “I said, ‘Robert, I believe this. I’d be more than happy to talk to all the guys. Have them give me a call on your behalf. I was with you when we did some things nobody else has ever done and you still have that opportunity if you want to go that direction. If you don’t, then I think you’re going to struggle.’
“I [told him I] want you to know what your capabilities are,” Shanahan said. “I had already talked to him about things I wasn’t happy with right after the Super Bowl. But there’s no sense rehashing that. [I said], ‘Let’s talk about the things you did good and why you had that success.'”
Shanahan also said he told Griffin not to go somewhere he’d be a dropback passer, and he believes that Hue Jackson will be good for Griffin, and that he should stick with the zone read style that Griffin balked at after his rookie year.
We can see that Shanahan thinks Griffin is talented, but we can also see why things went sour. Griffin and Shanahan never quite saw Griffin’s long-term role the same way. It led to the two having a difficult relationship, with Griffin in particular critical. It’s nice to hear Shanahan speak highly of his former quarterback, but it’s probably for the best that they’re not working together anymore.
