Around this time eight years ago, Robert Griffin III was selected by the Washington Redskins as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. And although he has yet to have a season that matches (or even belongs in the same conversation with) his rookie year, the 30-year-old quarterback said he believes “without a doubt” that he’ll be a starter again with a shot at a few Super Bowls.
Griffin had tumultuous path from the No. 2 overall pick to now being Lamar Jackson’s backup with the Baltimore Ravens, and, recently while on CBS Sports Radio’s The Zach Gelb Show, he recognized his current role could be a long-term thing and feels “like I have a home there.”
But the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner explained that he’s not relinquishing the idea of being an NFL starter once again. Griffin explained, via CBS Sports:
“It could be a long-term home, and I know that Lamar is the guy in Baltimore. But that doesn’t extinguish my fire to want to go out and be a starter – and not just be a starter, be a franchise player, be a guy that leads a team to multiple Super Bowls. So that’s my desire. I’m not in this to play for another four or five years as a backup. That’s not what I’m about. That’s not why I step in the building every single day, and I think I’ve proven that to my teammates and the coaches and the organization. So I’m just looking to help contribute any possible way that I can and obviously be compensated to the degree that I feel like I should be.”
After a series of injuries and clashes with the coaching staff, Washington ultimately released the 2012 Offensive Rookie of the Year, who then had a short stint with the Cleveland Browns and a year as a free agent before landing with the Ravens.
Although he acknowledged he wishes his tenure in Washington had a better ending, Griffin said he doesn’t “have any ill will in my heart towards D.C., towards any coaches or any ownership or any GMs or anything like that.” He added: “I know a lot of people expect me to bitter, expect me to be over-the-top angry about it, and I’ve moved on.”
More from Griffin via CBS Sports Radio:
“After sitting out of the league in 2017 and coming back in and having to earn everything all over again, starting from scratch – everyone saying, ‘Can he do it? Can he still do this? Can he still run? Can he still move? Can he still throw?’ – I think I’ve gone out and systematically shown over the course of the last two years that I can still do those things and do it at a high level.
“That’s my goal,” Griffin continued. “It’s not just to get back to the top of the mountain and look at the scenery; I want to get back to the top of the mountain and go win – and win a lot. That’s the focus, and that’s hand-in-hand what the Baltimore Ravens want to do in this moment. That’s where I’m at, so I’m going to maximize that.”
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