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Tearing it up

Shanahans gross
mishandling of RGlll

By Eric Wilkins, Staff Writer

t turns out that the Redskins

lost more than just the
game when they played the
Seahawks in the first round
of the playoffs. Robert Griffin
Ill, their prized franchise
quarterback suffered ACL,
LCL, and meniscus tears. To
those who aren’t up with the
anatomical lingo, he basically
destroyed his knee.

It never should have
gotten to that point though.
RGIII was already playing on
a less than 100 per cent knee
coming into the game, hobbled
by a previous injury. He
probably shouldn’t have been
playing at all. Mike Shanahan
stuck RGIII into the game
anyway. The rookie got off toa
roaring start, leading the ‘Skins
to two touchdowns right off
the bat. It wasn’t long after
that though that things began
to head downhill. Facing a
ferocious Seattle pass rush, it
was only a matter of time. Sure
enough, RGIII eventually came
up limping. Limping badly.

With the face of the
franchise clearly injured,
what did Shanahan do? He
kept him in the game. Makes

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you wonder if anything goes
on in that head of his at all.
Playing on one leg, Griffin was
bottled up completely by the
“Hawks defense, and one felt
that it couldn’t be long before
a switch had to be made for
the good of the team. But no,
RGIII was still there late in
the fourth, and that’s when
disaster struck. RGIII’s knee
buckled after the pivot tried
to coral a bad snap and he
crumpled to the ground. He
stayed down.

The reports suggest that
Griffin only suffered a partial
tear (of his ACL at least), but
as anyone knows, in the world
of professional sports, a partial
tear is as good as a full tear;
if you want to get back to full
functionality, you have to have
it all replaced anyway. And if it
all wasn’t bad enough already,
the young signal caller tore the
ACL in the same knee several
years ago at Baylor.

How Shanahan still has
ajob is a mystery to me.

What he did is the equivalent
of taking a car out on a flat
tire, continuing to drive the
car as it popped another,

and then taking none of the
responsibility when the vehicle
ultimately crashed. Sideline
reports have indicated that
Griffin wanted to stay in the
game, but what RGIII wanted
is completely irrelevant. The
coach is there for a reason.
He’s there to manage the team

and make smart decisions.
Decisions players can’t make
for themselves. Regardless of
what his quarterback told him,
Shanahan should have ignored
it and sat him on the bench.
And now RGIII will most
likely try and come back
in time for the start of next
season. He'll probably tear
some ligaments again and
cast his career into doubt.
The world only has one
Adrian Peterson. The Vikings
running back is a freak of

nature. One of a kind. Coming |

off reconstructive knee
surgery in late December and
managing to return for the
season opener was nothing
short of remarkable. And
then to lead the league in
rushing and almost break Eric
Dickerson’s rushing record in
the same season? No words
adequately describe what

an impossible feat he pulled
off. While Robert Griffin II

is an incredible athlete, to try
and replicate AP’s comeback
would be utter foolishness.
Take the necessary time and
rehab it fully. Sit out until late
in the year, or even take the
entire season off. There’s no
sense in risking a bright future
for a few wins.

Pay: $200 per month

 

= = a

RGlll injured on the ground while his team surrounds nim
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Newton (via The Washington Post)

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