The Redskins Portal - ESPN 980

As a sports reporter, we want athletes and coaches to be honest. We want them to reveal their thoughts and plans. How do you feel? Why did you do this? How come you made that decision?

As a radio talk show host, you live for famous targets to open their mouth and never shut it. Keep on adding logs to the fire, even as the calendar turns to June.

YOU want something to talk about, something to fuel the flames. It makes your life a lot easier, and quite honestly most members of the media are not able or willing to really get into the hard core x's and o's of a game, so a verbal gift reduces your time spent searching for something to talk about.

I am going to go against everything I should believe in and stand for. I am going to do it, because it's the right thing to do. Here's a bit of advice.

When it comes to "RG Knee" and anything that has transpired since that rainy Sunday in early December against the Baltimore Ravens, everybody involved and that means EVERYBODY has to just zip their lips.

Yes, sorry to say this but that includes you Mike Shanahan. I can't forget about Robert Griffin III or Robert Griffin Jr. No disrespect to anybody, and it is a free country to say what you feel. I get that. It's hard to resist. I struggle with that internal battle in a public forum all the time. I get it.

Here's the thing. The less you say, the better. If you say nothing about the past, that's preferred. At least from a Redskins standpoint. Nobody should really care if the media needs something to talk about, or if you are asked consistently. Just say No. Or do what Bill Belichick does, and be terse.

It sounds simple, and it is undeniably much harder to execute. However, this is a professional football team that won a division and ten games last year, before everything came crashing down on January 6th at FedExField.

Don't talk about it anymore. Feel free to talk about the recovery and the progress. That's great. Certainly, we would love to hear about a setback if one should occur. There's no good, and nothing but bad feelings that can be gained from talking about it again.

Thursday was closure, and if I was Mike Shanahan - I would call a 'meeting of the minds' which would include PR Chief Tony Wyllie, GM Bruce Allen (who has also mastered the art of dodging the media), Robert Griffin III, Robert Griffin Jr. & Howard Skall of CAA, who represents Griffin's agency and is very skilled at media relations.

In this meeting, I would make it very clear to anybody and everybody that ENOUGH is ENOUGH. No more. If you are asked about the past, don't answer it.

Respectfully decline the question or deflect it. "That's in the past" or "There's nothing we can do now except move forward" or even a "I am not going to go down that road anymore, out of respect to everyone involved."

If I was Shanahan, I would make it very clear that this is an organizational challenge to be on the same page. Not everybody is going to always agree or be in perfect harmony. Families and companies have to be on the same page, in order to move forward and take on the land mines that lay ahead. Even if there are disagreements. I live it every day. It happens in your home, in your office and with your friends.

I know it's hard. Trust me, I disagree plenty with how things are done in every way in my life. That's honesty.  I carefully limit if not totally prevent myself from communicating those thoughts in a public forum, because what positives can come out of it? Do I feel better? Maybe. One thing I have learned over my career, nobody wants to be around somebody who whines and cries constantly, and is obnoxious about it.

Yesterday at Redskins Park, both Robert Griffin III and Mike Shanahan handled themselves just fine and it was good to wrap it up. I would have done this two months ago, but what do I know?  Next week, both parties will speak again and other than what new progress the star quarterback has made, nothing else should be said.

By now, you have seen the quotes. You have heard the sound bytes. You know that despite the claims that they 'hashed everything out," a memory like that only fades and never truly goes away.

It will come up again, and again, and yet again. If it's RG III's Dad talking to Leon Harris of ABC 7, Mike Shanahan talking to one of a handful of national writers (Peter King, Albert Breer), Robert speaking to ESPN the Magazine or quite honestly anybody, the situation will be hashed and re-hashed.

Griffin III seemed to indicate that's where he is heading, telling reporters "We are moving forward from it. I told you guys that before and I will say it again. That's all I can say. We talked about it, we are on the same page and we are ready to go."

Good. Leave it at that. Don't talk about it anymore. This will be especially important if and when Robert gets injured again or something doesn't look right.

Griffin fired a pre-emptory strike about that issue as well, saying "I just feel like everyone is going to be very hypersensitive, about anything that happens  with me. My biggest fear is that I roll an ankle and they pull me out of the game, and that is being serious."

Griffin is refreshingly honest and I believe real. There's nothing really fake about him. He's feisty and to some degree, he is stubborn. Remember what he said after the Cleveland game, when he was not cleared to play. He was upset. He was real. He is emotional. He's also young, and there is a lot of pressure to say everything the right way.

Griffin III would be wise to be more like Tom Brady in this regard. Mike Shanahan would be wise to be more like Bill Belichick and even though this would hurt the media, it would go a long way to helping the Redskins through the choppy waters. 

Bottom line, Just zip it. It's the only way the drama will cease and desist. There's been enough nonsense in the franchise to last a lifetime. Everybody should be on the same page, and the only way to make sure that happens, is to limit the words and have everybody buy in.

Chris Russell - SFTheRooster@Yahoo.com - www.twitter.com/russellmania980

The Washington Redskins will move south for the summer beginning on Thursday July 25th, but the real work is in the process of being completed now.

Not that a roster of 90 guys won't be working hard under the boiling sun that downtown Richmond, Virginia is sure to bring, but in order for that to happen a facility must be built. A "Field of Dreams" as Redskins General Manager & Executive Vice President Bruce Allen called it.

Construction officially began on January 9th at the Bon Secours Washington Redskins Training Center at 2401 West Leigh Street, not far away from the Richmond Squirrels minor league baseball stadium and right off the Boulevard exit and I-95. It's nestled right by Children's Museum of Richmond and the Science Museum.

It's scheduled to be completed by June 30th, and features a main facility building for multiple uses, along  with a 92 player locker room and a premier workout facility that will be used throughout the year, but specifically designed for the Redskins.

During a hard-hat tour on Monday afternoon, the Redskins and city officials made it clear that while work still had to be done -- it won't ruin the good feelings and the real purpose (they say) of going away to training camp.

"Being in the same hotel together, living with each other. It's no different than what the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts do from the very beginning. It creates a special bond. It's not a secret or coincidence that only four Super Bowl winners haven't gone away for training camp. There's a special uniqueness and camraderie that you can  build," Bruce Allen said.

Allen mentioned that the facility might be so state-of-the-art and new that the players won't have to endure some of the unique challenges that a off-site training camp might bring.

"We knew what we needed at this training camp, for this limited time. It's actually going to be  a little bit nicer because it's brand new than you probably would want. You like the idea that training camp is a  tough time.  That's where a little bit of suffering is going on in order to  succeed later on in life," Allen said to reporters.

The facility has two full-size natural grass fields and a natural grass drill field, with the sod (which normally takes 6-8 weeks to fully hold) put in to place last week.  Allen said a key component was making the fields the same as they are at FedExField and Redskins Park, because the crown affects how key components of a offense work together.

"That's all part of home-field advantage. You want your players to understand the surface they're playing on. Crowns vary in the league. It allows your receivers and your quarterback to understand the timing of the same type of crown." We detailed the improvements that are being made to FedExField in our entry here http://redskins.espn980.com/bloggers/chris-russell/item/852-fedex-field-gets-fixed.

As for who will be here and when?? The Redskins open up training camp in just over two months and while Robert Griffin III will be present, there is obviously no guarantee that he will be able to participate in practice.

Allen said that they won't know Griffin's ability to participate until he takes a physical  saying it is "too early to tell" if he will on the field from the start, but that currently "he's been doing a lot of drill work on his own and with the other injured players. He has to just  follow the doctor's and the trainer's advice on a daily basis."

The real issue seems to be a perplexing one. What does the General Manager of the team get his star quarterback, who he traded a boatload of picks for, when that star quarterback has a very public wedding registry http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/wp/2013/05/20/stephen-a-smith-blames-rgiiis-fiancee-rebecca-liddicoat-for-gift-controversy/ and it becomes a source of national debate?

"My wife will select that. Unfortunatly, I think it's going to be something nice," Allen said in a joking manner (I think).  He also added that he didn't think he was going to be asked about the mini-drama, saying he thought "it was going to be about when's "RG 4"  come out or something like that."

Well OK then, Bruce. That's all I can say about that.  

Chris Russell / SFTheRooster@Yahoo.com // www.twitter.com/russellmania980  

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) Robert Griffin III's knee is still feeling fine. His ability to turn a room upside down is better than ever.

The Washington Redskins quarterback made an appearance - and quite an impact - Wednesday at a luncheon for the American Cancer Society. He raised $33,000 in a matter of minutes, more than half of the $60,000 tallied during the auction portion of the fundraiser.

The crowning moment came when a man from Texas paid $15,000 for a pair of pink cleats worn by Griffin in a game last season.

"You don't think that a pair of cleats can make that kind of difference," Griffin said. "But I guess they were highly sought-after."

Eighteen people then paid $1,000 each to pose with Griffin for a photograph that the quarterback will sign. He flashed his charismatic smile for each and every flash of the camera.

The guest of honor was Tanya Snyder, wife of Redskins owner Dan Snyder. A breast cancer survivor, Tanya Snyder received the society's Mother of the Year award. The Snyders' 17-year-old daughter Tiffanie gave a moving a tearful tribute to her mother and presented a slide show of intimate family photographs, offering a rare display of the media-shy owner's personal side.

"I was going to cry," Griffin said. "I think everybody got a little choked up."

Overall, the event raised some $400,000 for cancer research.

Griffin also showed up his playful side, flashing bunny ears behind his fiancee as they posed with Tanya Snyder. And, of course, there was the inevitable football question: How's the rehab coming along with his surgically reconstructed right knee?

"I'm doing great. The knee feels fine," said Griffin, whose stated goal is to return by Week 1 of the regular season. "It's about taking it slow, and each day is a better day because the knee feels better and you do more things. It's just a process that I'm going through."

Follow Joseph White on Twitter: http://twitter.com/JGWhiteAP

So Robert Griffin III went to the circus at Verizon Center last Sunday. That's great, and by all accounts, he had a great time as he should have.

While you can read about his day here http://wapo.st/Zm0nRx, the fact  of the matter is the show may have left Verizon Center for the Wizards, Caps and NCAA Tournament, but the action was just shifting locations.

Redskins Park in Ashburn. It's like the great Eagles song "Hotel California" and the famous line "You can check out anytime you want, but you can never leave." It truly never ends. I'm being as kind as I can here.

In case you've been sleeping under a rock and quite honestly maybe I was,  it was just after 7 pm on Tuesday when word of a Griffin III text to Trey Wingo of ESPN first was circulated.

"My knee is getting better every day. The doctors say I'm ahead of schedule. My goal is to return healthy in week one but if I'm not ready then i will wait until i am, however long that is. My first NFL season and my injury that ended it showed me a lot about the league, my team and myself. i know where my responsibility is within the dilemma that led to me having surgery to repair my knee and all parties involved know their responsibilities as well. I m looking forward to playing the game we all love so much again and not behind at the negative. thanks for the overwhelming level of support that i've received, sic em bears and hail to the redskins!!" (The tweet was directly copied from Wingo's twitter account, http://bit.ly/YSmX4i @Wingoz)

I didn't think there was anything in the message that was particularly concerning, and I was busy covering the first period of the Capitals - Islanders game at Verizon Center, so it was far from a burning issue or anything more than  basically the same old message we've heard before.

On Wednesday, it somehow became a big issue as the statement was debated in various forms of media, including on ESPN 980. According to ProFootballTalk.com, http://bit.ly/11Olgbz, the issue made it (shockingly) to "Pardon the Interruption" on ESPN.

The story quotes Tony Kornheiser as saying "This is a thinly veiled direct shot at his coach, Mike Shanahan,” while Wilbon per the quotes in the story as saying  "It is direct, it’s bold, it’s a heavy shot and it’s deserved."

Here is what I don't get. If you want to read the statement and walk away from it as Griffin III is taking a shot at Mike Shanahan, I suppose you can have that thought. In no way could you say that it is "direct" or "bold" or a "heavy shot." Or could you even reasonably think it is a "thinly veiled direct shot at his coach."

I don't get what part of it signals out Mike Shanahan (who I sharply criticized after the Seattle game, and for weeks after the re-injury). You could walk away thinking that Griffin III is not taking all of the responsibility for playing through it and sacrificing his body for the team. That is a fair and reasonable thought.

For Griffin III to say "all parties involved know their responsibilities as well," screams out to me that he is referring to a collective group (not just Mike Shanahan) that includes Dr. James Andrews, other team doctors, Larry Hess and other members of the training staff, Kyle Shanahan, Matt LaFleur, Dan Snyder and the FedEx Field stadium operations crew. It means everyone.  Not one person, even though THAT person is ultimately in charge of everything.

Furthermore, when Griffin III said that "all parties involved know their responsibilities as well" that doesn't mean that he was saying one specific person made a mistake or that he was mis-treated. As I said on twitter, what I believe he meant is that everybody involved shared a little bit of responsibility and that the lines of communication and trust will be more open and honest the next time a situation like this arises.

It makes no sense that Shanahan intentionally wanted his big ticket back to glory to get hurt. This is the same head coach that would not let Griffin III play a must-win game in Cleveland just a few weeks before, despite the player really wanting to play. Griffin III, as he admitted after the game, was not happy with the decision that was forced upon him. He wanted to play desperately.

Just like Griffin wanted to play after missing only one snap in the Baltimore game. Griffin wanted to play, because he's a competitor and a football warrior. Sometimes, he might be his own worst enemy. With time to think, Shanahan prevented Griffin from playing in Cleveland. With no time to think in a chaotic environment, he allowed his star quarterback to go back in against the eventual Super Bowl Champions.

Shanahan allowed him to play the next week against Philadelphia, and in the division clincher against Dallas. Shanahan also allowed him to play thru discomfort,  clearly limited mobility and perhaps altered mechanics against Seattle, in a do or die situation. The Redskins died, and Griffin was on the operating table 72 hours later.

Shanahan did not allow (nor did the Redskins medical staff) Griffin to re-enter the Atlanta game, in which Griffin suffered a concussion. They made the decision they thought was best, in the overall interests of the player at the time. Of course, concussion protocol is a completely different world in today's NFL than it used to be and is entirely different than dealing with a right knee injury.

The point of this is - if anything - Griffin should have probably said something to the effect of "I need to a better job of communicating and not being as stubborn about my body  on the football field" and I believe that would have been something that most people would have no problem with.

Griffin III re-tweeted the statement he provided Wingo, so he certainly did not have any regrets and then at 1:16 PM on Wednesday, a senior Redskins official texted Zac Boyer of the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star and ESPN 980/my cell phone, with essentially the exact same statement that Wingo posted.

The only difference was it started with "Got a brief update for everyone." The statement was then the exact same as what Griffin III had sent to Wingo on Tuesday night, with the other  difference being at the end, Griffin's charming side coming out as he ended it with "P.S. How is your bracket doing? Ha ha."

If Shanahan had a major issue with what he said, I can guarantee that Griffin III would have been told to issue some sort of clarifying statement. Instead, they re-issued the same statement some 20 hours later.

The Redskins have never been accused of being the smartest football organization in the world when it comes to public statements, but somebody in that building reads and hears just about everything that is reported in the local and national media.  I would be shocked if the Redskins brass had no knowledge of Griffin's statement to Wingo.

What does this all mean? It means that a drama that was already going to be intense under the scorching late summer skies in Richmond and Ashburn, is going to be more about the characters and less about the finished product.

Chris Russell // SFTheRooster@Yahoo.com // www.twitter.com/russellmania980

For all of the criticism that Redskins Head Coach and Executive VP Mike Shanahan has endured during and since Sunday’s NFC Wild-Card loss to the Seattle Seahawks and for his handling of Robert Griffin III , one thing is clear.

This controversy is never going away, and this pretty much ensures that the Shanahan’s will be under even more scrutiny than they already were, which is not going to be fun for the daily Redskins media corps to deal with.

As anybody who has listened to me since halftime on Sunday night on ESPN 980 and the Washington Redskins Radio Network knows, I have been critical of Mike Shanahan, Kyle Shanahan, and everybody associated with the decision or perhaps we should call it the “non-decision before the incision.”

It does no good to keep bashing, because the damage is done. Surgery was performed Wednesday, as we detailed here and now the Redskins future is on the clock. AGAIN.

Before we move forward, I do think it is important to examine if the criticism was even valid or not. There were two components. The first issue was the medical side. The second issue was talent evaluation, and the Redskins refusal to remove a clearly hobbled Griffin III from the game to prevent further injury and to not hurt the team any further.

The latter was my issue. As for the medicals, we’ve already seen that the Redskins have a chaotic, unorganized environment which directly involves (or doesn’t?) Dr. James Andrews, who the team flies to every game – and secures his game day services exclusively.

I don’t necessarily blame Mike Shanahan for any of that mess, although as essentially the figure head of the Redskins organization, it is safe to say that the team needs to strongly examine that element.

I had a much harder time with Mike and Kyle Shanahan not-seeing what everybody in the press box could immediately see and what America was able to see via the replays and close-ups by FOX.

I wanted to reach out to somebody who knew a lot more than I do, about quarterback mechanics. I wanted that person to have  a level of expertise, and  independence that they would be willing to speak honestly.

That man? Terry Shea (www.coachshea.com) . Robert Griffin III’s quarterbacks coach from the time he left Baylor University until just before the phenom was drafted by the Washington Redskins in late April.

Terry Shea is not only a quarterbacks guru, but somebody who also spent time on the sidelines coaching in many NFL games. He knows the environment, and how crazy it can be.

Mike Shanahan often says he has the "worst seat in the house" on the sidelines. Hard to fathom, but I understand that the vision is different. So does Shea.

Shea, served as quarterbacks coach for the Kansas City Chiefs, Miami Dolphins and St. Louis Rams, while also landing the offensive coordinator position with the Chicago Bears at one point. He knows the sidelines of an NFL game, as much as he knows the position.

Shea has also worked extensively with Matthew Stafford, Sam Bradford, Blaine Gabbert and currently has Arkansas’ Tyler Wilson, USC’s Matt Barkley & Kansas State's Collin Klein under his tutelage.

Shea had not broken down any of Robert Griffin III’s film from his rookie season, but you know what a quarterback looks like, when you see one. He watched parts of the Seattle playoff game, and said the one big thing he noticed was that most of the throws Griffin made were “almost all with his arm.”

On the touchdown throw (Logan Paulsen), following the first re-aggravation of the right knee, Shea said “I didn’t see the mechanics of his right leg come through. A tender knee was very apparent.”

Shea, is not about evaluating system and fit. That’s not what he works on. He works on motion and mechanics and ways to develop and best utilize the natural talent.

He told ESPN 980 that if Griffin III had a ‘locked knee’ that it would absolutely affect his accuracy, and it “might have impaired some of his ability to push off (the plant leg),” which I think anybody watching the game was clearly able to notice.

Shea told me via phone on Thursday morning that Griffin III’s left leg or his lead leg is more important than his right, or back leg, saying “If you had to injure one or the other, the right knee not as important as the left. If u had to choose one of the two legs (to get injured), the least damaging would be the back leg.”

I thought that was an interesting point, but maybe that is my pitching and baseball side of me coming into my thought process. I was under the assumption that the plant leg was more important than your forward leg. It’s not, in Shea’s opinion and I’ll trust his expertise.

Here’s the other thing that I would have had no idea of, and this is where Shea basically said that the media’s criticism of Mike Shanahan was unwarranted.

Shea told ESPN 980, that while he could see on TV and with close-up HD replays that Griffin III was clearly not throwing the way you normally would, “You just can’t see it on the sideline as a coach. You can see that on tape. You really can’t see the mechanics on the ground level.”

Shea continued, “I would have seen the TD catch, and I would have thought Wow!”

I asked Shea – what about Kyle Shanahan and Redskins QB coach, Matt LaFleur and how they did not see enough in Griffin’s mechanics to notice the drop-off.

“Your eyes are focused on seeing what the quarterback sees. You don’t watch his mechanics. I would say the (Redskins) coaches would not have any opportunity.”

I still found it hard to believe that with all of the technology (HD video boards) and coaches, that somebody could miss what was fairly obvious to every one watching the game, and Shea countered “unless you have magic eyes and not many of us do, it’s not realistic.”

He kept going back to the touchdown throw (he did not see the interception) and said “You can see where Robert didn’t get his back leg through and over, he made it all with his arm on TV,” but he hammered home his belief that it would have been very difficult if not impossible for Mike Shanahan to see that from the ground.

Some good news for Griffin III’s future, according to Shea who said it was great that Griffin had the surgery so quick, “his body type is built to eliminate swelling, than a guy who has a bigger frame.”

You can buy a copy of Shea’s fantastic book “Eyes Up” right here.

Chris Russell // SFTheRooster@Yahoo.com // www.twitter.com/russellmania980

The Washington Redskins now face a dilemma that might be compared to the national debt or the gun control debate. Alright, maybe not that serious or hopeless but you get the point.

You have the future of the franchise on an operating table for the 2^nd time in three plus years, with a ‘direct repair’ to his LCL and a ‘re-do’ on his previous ACL reconstruction from 2009.

How do you move on from here? The answer is not very easy. The Redskins and Dr. James Andrews seem optimistic. Robert Griffin II (RG 3’s Dad) made comments to USA TODAY that would suggest the damage to the ACL wasn’t that bad.

The ‘re-do’ as the official statement released by Dr. Andrews and the Redskins called it would suggest that a new grafting procedure was not done, and therefore the recovery process should be easier.

The ‘direct repair’ to the LCL would suggest to me that a graft was not utilized, and therefore the original components of the LCL are still intact. Again, theoretically this should make the recovery time shorter.

Now for a splash of bad news (I think). Washington Times & ESPN 980 Redskins Insider Rich Campbell tweeted the following on Wednesday night “For those sweating the ambiguity of James Andrews’ statement, a source confirms RG3 had his reconstructed ACL fully reconstructed again.”

Campbell also added via tweet (@Rich_Campbell) “Dr. James Andrews used a patellar tendon graft from RG3’s left (healthy) knee in Wednesday’s ACL revision surgery, a source confirms.”

My friend and the longtime terrific Redskins insider, John Keim of the Washington Examiner did a nice breakdown with Dr. Richard Lehman who is with the US Sports Center for Medicine in St. Louis, on what the recoveries and medical terms could indicate.

Mike Shanahan has not spoke since Monday, so we await his words. ESPN 980 reached out via text to Shanahan on Tuesday night, and he has not responded. ESPN 980 also reached out and made contact with Dr. James Andrews on Tuesday and Wednesday, and he said that he was not authorized to speak anymore about the situation, by order of the Redskins.

OK, so where does that leave us? With a gigantic question mark is one spot it leaves us. Who knows when Robert Griffin III will be on the field for practice, let alone an actual game.

I would think it is very optimistic for him to be ready for the season opener which would be right around September 8-10, 2013.

The Redskins and Dr. Andrews, I believe did a major disservice to Griffin III and some unrealistic expectations and hopes by issuing a statement that in part read, “We expect a full recovery and it is everybody's hope and belief that due to Robert's high motivation, he will be ready for the 2013 season.”

If Griffin III can not play or practice at all in training camp or in the four-game preseason, then it would be beyond obvious – he wouldn’t start in the regular season opener.

I would think a more realistic target and cautious time frame would be to have Griffin III on the preseason physically unable to perform list (PUP), and then likely have to transfer him (if he doesn’t practice even once) to the regular season PUP list, which would mean he would have to miss and not practice for the first six weeks of the regular season.

At that point, the Redskins would then have an opportunity to engage in a three-week window in which Griffin could practice and be activated, similar to the Jammal Brown situation.

Obviously the Redskins hope it would work out better than it did for Brown, but the point is still the same. As I wrote about on Monday,  rehabilitation and recovery from any injury can vary and be extremely complicated.

There are many examples and possible reasons for setbacks, but possible arthritis, swelling, fluid and pain are all amongst them.

In the column linked above from Keim and Dr. Lehman – Keim specifically asks Lehman about possible long-term side effects like arthritis and if he would be worried or not?. “No, I would be concerned. You still have the same issues in play. … Virtually everybody the clock starts ticking and there are degenerative changes in the joint so every time you re-injure that joint you re-up that a little bit and the breakdown in joint damage gets worse so you still have similar issues.”

Redskins offensive lineman Kory Lichtensteiger had massive reconstruction surgery on his ACL and MCL on October 25^th, 2011. The surgery was performed by Redskins team doctor, Dr. Christopher Annunziata.

However, Lichtensteiger came back for the start of camp late last July and two days into practice was out, a setback that required arthroscopic surgery to clean out what the team called “loose particles” in the knee.

In talking to Lichtensteiger on a weekly basis throughout the season, he would admit that he was in constant discomfort, and at times pain – a process that he once joked about needing until Saturday night after a game on Sunday six days before, to have his body feel better.

Defensive end Jarvis Jenkins tore his ACL in mid-August, 2011 and had surgery in early September of 2011 to repair just his ACL (no other ligaments). Jenkins was cleared to return to off-season workouts in April 2012, and displayed the type of potential the Redskins thought they had him as the season wore on. He played in all 16 games.

It is important to note that Jenkins did not have any previous history, and only had his ACL repaired.

Everybody (including Mike Shanahan) is bringing up the name Adrian Peterson, who tore his ACL/MCL and damaged cartilage on December 24, 2011 at FedEx Field. Peterson went on to have a fantastic, record setting campaign and did not miss a regular season game.

No doubt, modern medicine and treatment is in Griffin III’s favor. Dr. Andrews performed Peterson’s surgery as well on December 30th, and Peterson (27) is older than Griffin III. Peterson, according to USA Today had his torn ACL ‘replaced by a graft from the patellar tendon of his kneecap, anchored on either end by screws.’

To read more on Peterson’s surgery and recovery, this is an excellent piece via Bleacher Report bit.ly/Vj0gZW

However, that was Peterson’s FIRST knee surgery (he had multiple injuries at Oklahoma, collar bone, shoulder, high ankle sprain) and it was to repair the ACL/MCL and not the ACL/LCL which many orthopedic surgeons, including Dr. Michael Kaplan of ESPN have suggested that is a much more difficult recovery.

Not to mention that Griffin is again, recovering from his 2^nd operation. Common sense and medical analysts all agree that it could be a much more difficult road for Griffin III.

Common sense tells me a lot of things, and while I don’t pretend to know everything – it’s hard to fathom seeing Griffin III on opening day. If I am wrong, I will be more than glad while also being very concerned for his long-term well being.

Chris Russell // SFTheRooster@Yahoo.com // www.twitter.com/russellmania980

WASHINGTON (AP) Robert Griffin III had surgery to repair two ligaments in his troublesome right knee Wednesday morning, said a person familiar with the situation.

The Washington Redskins quarterback had his knee repaired by orthopedist James Andrews in Florida. The doctor had already diagnosed a torn lateral collateral ligament in his right knee. The person said Andrews also found and repaired damage found in Griffin's ACL.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the Redskins had not made an announcement about the latest details surrounding the rookie quarterback's injury.

Now comes RG3's next challenge: a race against time to get healthy before the beginning of next season.

Griffin's recovery time will take several months at least but could extend into next season, depending on the extent of the damage. The process could also be speeded up because Griffin is known as a focused, determined competitor who would be expected to take his rehab as seriously as possible.

"Thank you for your prayers and support. I love God, my family, my team, the fans, & I love this game. See you guys next season," Griffin tweeted before the surgery began.

Athletes generally need nine to 12 months to make a full recovery from a torn ACL, although Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson made a remarkable return this season about eight months after tearing an ACL - and nearly broke the NFL's single-season rushing record.

Russ Paine, a physical therapist in Houston who worked with Peterson during his rehab, said the running back's timetable for returning to competition was in fact "pretty traditional."

"What's non-traditional is him almost breaking the rushing record," Paine said in a phone interview Wednesday.

Griffin reinjured his knee at least twice in Sunday's playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks, prompting a national debate over whether coach Mike Shanahan endangered Griffin's career by not taking the team's franchise player out of the game sooner.

The first major injury to the knee came in 2009, when Griffin tore the ACL in the third game of the season while playing for Baylor. Griffin missed the rest of the year but returned in 2010 and won the Heisman Trophy in 2011.

Griffin sprained the LCL last month when he was hit by Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata at the end of a 13-yard scramble. Griffin missed one game and returned to play three more while wearing a bulky knee brace, his mobility clearly hindered.

Then, on Sunday, Griffin hurt the knee again as he fell awkwardly while throwing a pass in the first quarter against the Seahawks. He remained in the game, with Shanahan saying he trusted Griffin's word that all was OK.

Griffin finally departed in the fourth quarter, after the knee buckled while he was trying to field a bad shotgun snap.

The No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, Griffin was one of several rookie quarterbacks to make an instant impact on the NFL this season. He set the league record for best season passer rating by a rookie QB and led the Redskins to their first NFC East title in 13 years.

But he also had to leave three games early due to injuries - two because of his knee and one because of a concussion - and missed a fourth altogether because of the knee.

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AP Sports Writer Rachel Cohen in New York contributed to this report.

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WASHINGTON (AP) Robert Griffin III had surgery Wednesday morning to repair a torn ligament and to determine whether there was any other damage in his ailing right knee.

A person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press that the procedure was expected to last about two hours. The person said orthopedist James Andrews planned to repair a torn lateral collateral ligament and examine the state of Griffin's ACL.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the Redskins had not made an announcement about the latest details surrounding the rookie quarterback's injury.

A torn LCL requires a rehabilitation period of several months, possibly extending into training camp and the start of next season. A torn ACL is a more severe injury, typically requiring nine to 12 months of recovery, although Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson made a remarkable return this season some eight months after tearing an ACL - and nearly broke the NFL's single-season rushing record

Griffin was optimistic before he entered surgery, tweeting early Wednesday: "Thank you for your prayers and support. I love God, my family, my team, the fans, & I love this game. See you guys next season."

Griffin reinjured his knee at least twice in Sunday's playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks, prompting a national debate over whether coach Mike Shanahan endangered Griffin's career by not taking his franchise player out of the game sooner.

The first major injury to his knee came in 2009, when Griffin tore the ACL in the third game of the season while playing for Baylor. Griffin missed the rest of the year but returned in 2010 and won the Heisman Trophy in 2011.

Griffin sprained the LCL last month when he was hit by Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata at the end of a 13-yard scramble. Griffin missed one game and returned to play three more with a knee brace, his mobility clearly hindered.

Then, on Sunday, Griffin hurt the knee again as he fell awkwardly while throwing a pass in the first quarter against the Seahawks. He remained in the game, with Shanahan saying he trusted Griffin's word that all was OK.

Griffin finally departed in the fourth quarter, after the knee buckled while he was trying to field a bad shotgun snap.

The No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, Griffin was one of several rookie quarterbacks to make an instant impact on the NFL this season. He set the league record for best season passer rating by a rookie QB and led the Redskins to their first NFC East title in 13 years.

But he also had to leave three games early due to injuries - two because of his knee and one because of a concussion - and missed a fourth altogether because of the knee.

Follow Joseph White on Twitter: http://twitter.com/JGWhiteAP

Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

© 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press.
Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

So much to say, so little time to do it..I'll try to get through as many things as I can in a quick fashion (not easy for me).

The Redskins season came to an end on Sunday as everyone knows, perhaps as quickly as the BCS Championship game ended on Monday night. Washington blew a 14-0 lead, and lost 24-14 to a better team. Period.

We can blame Mike Shanahan and the medical staff all day long, and I have voiced my concerns and thought process on this ad-nauseam. I strongly feel that Kirk Cousins should have been the Redskins quarterback at the LATEST, halftime. If it was my call, Cousins would have been in the game up 14-3, on the Redskins 4th series of the game. After the initial re-injury, Griffin III threw a touchdown pass to Logan Paulsen. You could see he did not plant and drive on the throw, but he did not have too.

The next series, Griffin was sacked by Chris Clemons on first down - a play that was wiped out due to a Brandon Browner illegal contact penalty. Griffin fumbled the ball, but the Redskins recovered. More importantly, was his inability to flow away from the rush and break the pocket. On 3rd down, Griffin was erratic on a quick throw to the right towards Logan Paulsen.

I remember saying right then and there (not after the fact) to get him out of the game to make  sure he was OK and that he could do the things he needs to do to be effective. Clearly, the Redskins trusted the player and the leader, instead of making sure a football warrior was not just being what he is -- tough.

This is not a criticism of Robert Griffin III, but it will be viewed as such. Sometimes, your toughness and desire might get in the way of the reality. He is obviously not happy about any criticisms or questions about his body, but it's OK to be human. It's OK to say 'I can't do it' or 'I have to think of my health and the team in a different way.'

He should not have been left to make the decision. It was clear for everybody to see that he couldn't run, and his effectiveness in the passing game has clearly been altered since the injury, in more games than just Seattle -- and no matter what Mike Shanahan or anybody wants to say -- he was MORE AT RISK than you normally are on a football field.

***Now a off-season of afterglow, turns into the Maury Povich show minus the baby-daddy. The questions will linger no matter what Dr. James Andrews  rules on the MRI and exam Tuesday in Pensacola, Florida.

The number one (OK not just one) question I have -- when does a (at least twice, likely) surgically repaired knee become arthritic or persistently sore, or continuously filled with fluid? When does the knee, which has been traumatized multiple times give out a lot easier, than a normal knee? When does Robert Griffin III's season end next year or the year after, on a freak play, that could have been avoided if he was able to spend this off-season on a strengthening program instead of a rehab program?

***Why did the Redskins abandon or move away from Alfred Morris after the first two series on Sunday. Clearly, the Seahawks were playing the run and loading up the box, because they made stopping Morris their first priority. Who wouldn't, right? It became especially more important as Griffin could not do anything to keep the Seahawks guessing. Again, this is a huge part of the reason why he should not have been in there. Morris  ran for (7-41) on the first two drives, which helped paved the way for a 14-0 lead.

After that, he was (9-39) over the final 47:26 of the football game. The Seahawks dared the Redskins to run it, and the Washington offense went away from what they do best. If you have one criticism of Kyle Shanahan, it's that occasionally he tries to do too much to counter an opposing defense. The Redskins threw the ball 10 times for 71 yards combined on the first two series of Sunday's loss. Afterwards, they threw 19 times for 44 yards. YUK.

Again, with a 14-0 lead, the Redskins threw 19 passes for 44 gross yards, 2 sacks compared to 13  combined rushes (Morris, Griffin, Young, Cousins) for the entire team, and 53 total  rushing yards (had 61 on first two drives, finished with 104). That's clearly not very good or doing what you do best, even if it was not working great.

***The defense was gashed on the ground to the tune of 224 yards, but it was more about bad tackling and over pursuit. Ryan Kerrigan, DeAngelo Hall, Barry Cofield, London Fletcher, Madieu Williams all come to mind as guilty parties. The Redskins were gashed by what they saw a lot of during camp, when it was closed to the fans and media. Maybe that was the problem. They don't practice against the Redskins offense during the regular season.

***Reed Doughty was simply fantastic. Even though his contested and dropped interception cost the Redskins three points, Doughty finished with 12 tackles, 2 sacks, and one pass defense. We tweeted it and talked about it in the back half of the week, that Reed Doughty was going to be a huge difference maker and he was.

Chris Russell // SFTheRoosoter@Yahoo.com // www.twitter.com/russellmania980

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) Russell Wilson raced ahead to throw the final block on Marshawn Lynch's fourth-quarter, go-ahead touchdown run, doing just enough to get in the way of the Washington Redskins safety near the goal line.

Less than a minute later, Robert Griffin III's knee buckled as he tried to field a bad shotgun snap, the pain so bad that he didn't even try to recover the ball.

The last rookie quarterback standing in the NFL playoffs is Wilson - the third-round pick who teamed with Lynch on Sunday to lead the Seattle Seahawks to a 24-14 victory over Griffin and the Redskins.

"Marshawn always tells me, `Russ, I got your back, no matter what,'" Wilson said. "So I just try to help him out every once in a while."

And the latest debate over the wisdom of keeping an injured franchise player on the field - when he's obviously nowhere near his best - starts with coach Mike Shanahan, who let Griffin keep going until the QB could absolutely go no more.

"I think I did put myself at more risk," Griffin said. "But every time you get on the field, you're putting yourself on the line."

Lynch ran for 132 yards, and Wilson completed 15 of 26 passes for 187 yards and ran eight times for 67 yards as Seahawks overcame a 14-0 first-quarter hole - their biggest deficit of the season - and will visit the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons next Sunday.

Meanwhile, Griffin was headed for an MRI exam to determine the extent of the damage on his re-injured right knee. He was already playing with a big black brace, having sprained the lateral collateral ligament about a month ago against the Baltimore Ravens. He hadn't looked his usual self in the two games he had played since, and he was obviously hobbled after falling awkwardly while throwing an incomplete pass in the first quarter Sunday.

In the fourth quarter, Griffin labored on a 9-yard run that made him look 32 years old instead of 22.

"He said, `Hey, trust me. I want to be in there, and I deserve to be in there,'" Shanahan said. "I couldn't disagree with him."

Shanahan said he'll probably second-guess himself over his decision. He has the entire offseason to do so. And, whatever the injury, Griffin at least has time to recover.

Wilson, on the other hand, will carry on. The day began with three rookie quarterbacks in the playoffs, but No. 1 overall pick Andrew Luck was eliminated when Indianapolis lost to Baltimore.

Seattle is riding a six-game winning streak, having left behind any doubts that the team can hold its own outside the Pacific Northwest. The Seahawks were 3-5 on the road in the regular season and had lost eight straight road playoff games, the last win coming in 1983 against the Miami Dolphins.

"It was only two touchdowns, but it's still a big comeback and, in this setting and the crowd, it's a marvelous statement about the guys' resolve and what is going on," Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. "It's not about how you start but how you finish."

Seattle's defense shut down the Redskins after a rough start. Washington had 129 yards in the first quarter and 74 for the rest of the game. Griffin was 6 for 9 for 68 yards and two touchdowns after 15 minutes; he was 4 for 10 for 16 yards with one interception the rest of the way.

"It was hard to watch RG3 tonight," Carroll said. "It was hard on him. He was freaking gallant."

The numbers were reversed for the Seahawks, who rediscovered Lynch in the second quarter and put together three consecutive scoring drives to pull within a point, 14-13, at halftime.

Steven Hauschka, who injured his left calf during the first half and had to relinquish kickoff duties, nevertheless sandwiched field goals of 32 and 29 yards around a 4-yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Michael Robinson. Wilson fumbled on the TD drive, but the ball was fortuitously scooped up by Lynch, who ran for a 19-yard gain.

The Seahawks controlled the second half, but then it was Lynch's turn to fumble - at Washington's 1-yard line. The Redskins recovered this one, and the Seahawks had another drive get to Washington's 28 before a sack forced a punt - rather than a long field goal attempt by an injured kicker.

But the Seahawks kept coming. Wilson led the way for two big change-of-direction runs by Lynch in the game, the second one a 27-yard scoring run with 7:08 remaining.

A 2-point conversion gave the Seahawks a 21-14 lead, and then came the moment that essentially put the outcome to rest.

On the second play of the Redskins' next possession, Griffin's knee bent the wrong way on a second-and-22 at the Washington 12. He lay on the ground as the Seahawks pounced on the ball.

Griffin walked off the field under his own power, but he was done for the night. By the end of the game, he was sitting alone on the white sideline bench, his brace discarded on a bench next to him.

With good field position, the Seahawks kicked a short field goal to give them the insurance they needed. Fellow rookie Kirk Cousins, subbing for Griffin, was unable to rally the Redskins in the final minutes.

"Despite the fact that we have a `nobody' team," Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman said, "a team not full of first-rounders and things like that, we have a lot of guys that play at a high level."

NOTES: DE Chris Clemons, Seattle's best pass rusher, hurt his left knee in the third quarter and did not return. He will undergo an MRI. "We're concerned about it," Carroll said. ... Redskins LG Kory Lichtensteiger re-injured his sprained left ankle in the first quarter. ... The playoff meeting between the two teams was the third, but first outside Seattle. The Seahawks won 20-10 in January 2006, and 35-14 in January 2008. Those were the last two postseason games played by the Redskins. ... Redskins LT Trent Williams shoved Sherman in the face as the teams met on the field after the final whistle. "It was a dirty move by Trent Williams," Sherman said. "I can understand why he's frustrated; it's the end of their season." Williams took responsibility and said he acted in an "immature manner." Later, Sherman tweeted that he received "a very classy text" message from Williams and there's "no ill will either way."

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