Mike Shanahan hasn’t coached the Redskins for more than a year, but he still has plenty to say about his former quarterback and team owner.
Shanahan shed some light on what it was like to work with Robert Griffin III under Daniel Snyder during an hour-long interview Wednesday with ESPN Radio in Washington D.C. Among the juiciest of details was a meeting that Griffin requested with Shanahan after his rookie season in 2012. Shanahan said that RG3 wanted certain plays ripped out of the playbook because they were “unacceptable” and exposed him to injury by running the ball too much. You may recall that Griffin tore his ACL and LCL in the team’s playoff loss to Seattle that year.
The word “unacceptable” actually brought a smirk to Shanahan’s face because the words coming out of his quarterback’s mouth sounded eerily familiar.
Here’s what Shanahan told “The Sports Fix” as transcribed by DC Sports Bog.
“He actually [mentioned] what plays were acceptable and unacceptable, and when he started talking about what plays were acceptable and unacceptable, and that he wasn’t a rookie anymore and wanted to voice his opinion, the term unacceptable is used by Dan, the owner, quite often. So [I had] a little bit of a smile when I heard some of these complaints,” Shanahan said of his meeting with RG3.
Shanahan said Griffin wanted to establish himself as a dropback passer in the mold of Aaron Rodgers. Since that sentiment was also shared by Snyder, it was time to go straight to the horse’s mouth.
“When I went over and talked to Dan over at his house after I talked to Robert [after Griffin’s rookie year], I just told Dan, ‘Hey Dan, I just had a conversation with Robert and I think this conversation is coming from you more so than it is Robert,'” Shanahan said. “I said, ‘If that’s the case, there’s no way, unless your owner, your GM, your head coach and your quarterback are all on the same page you win in the National Football League.'”
Also in his hour-long interview, Shanny said he was not a fan of the Donovan McNabb trade and that he believes it was driven by Snyder.
The fact that RG3 felt emboldened to take this stance shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Griffin allegedly bragged to teammates about his influence over Snyder during Shanahan’s final season in Washington.
Griffin’s antics apparently have continued under Jay Gruden, who seemingly called out his quarterback every week during his first year as coach of the Redskins.
Coincidentally, Gruden told reporters at the scouting combine Wednesday that Griffin will enter camp as the team’s starter. The 2015 campaign will be a make-or-break season for Griffin as he enters the final year of his rookie contract. If he doesn’t revert to his rookie form, he’ll be taking food off his own table.
