APFor every minute of the first two years of his career, quarterback Robert Griffin III had linebacker London Fletcher as a teammate. And Fletcher made some observations about Griffin during Fletcher’s one-hour visit to NBCSN’s Pro Football Talk on Tuesday.
Fletcher pointed out that, to truly lead teammates, Griffin has to be willing to possibly anger them.
“I think the biggest concern will be him embracing that leadership role in terms of having to be the total team leader and sometimes having to be the a bad guy,” Fletcher said. “You know, it’s a different dynamic when you have to be the leader sometimes you have to say something to maybe upset or ruffle a few feathers and that’s one of the things he’s going to have to balance.”
That balance could become even more challenging in 2014, with receiver DeSean Jackson hoping to prove the Eagles wrong not by clearing out the underneath zones for teammates who will advance the ball but by catching passes and gaining yards. If Jackson doesn’t get enough touches, he could grumble (see Mike Wallace). And it initially will be Griffin’s job to keep Jackson from doing that.
Fletcher thinks Griffin can do it, in part because Fletcher believes Griffin isn’t a diva.
“He’s a hard worker, he’s extremely talented, he wants to be the best,” Fletcher said. “I saw that guy rehab three times a day last year [when] we were both going through a rehab situation. . . . He spent so much time in there, he wasn’t out doing all the commercials and all the things you saw. . . . Perception in this case is not reality.”
That’s good news for Griffin’s team, because it will be on Griffin to become a true leader in order to bring together an offense that has plenty of weapons but, barring a dramatic change in the rules at next month’s ownership meetings, only one football. Griffin, as Fletcher explained it, needs to be willing to say things in the locker room that need to be said, even if those things aren’t popular with the people who are hearing them.
RG3 is simply a bust … deal.
That’s a great and insightful point, Mr. Fletcher.
Wear an N.W.O shirt
He was pretty bad last year I think he has that role down.
“see Mike Wallace).”
I’m PRETTY sure Mike Wallace’s grumbling had something to do with the OC not really knowing what he was doing. Something Dolphin fans were grumbling about and something non-dolphin fans that know the game were perplexed about.
That and always being wide open and missed.
Boom! If RG3 runs he’ll go faster #maddenturducken
Wow. Just retire already. You couldn’t help your team get to 4 wins, and you’re not helping now.
I don’t think RGIII is a bust, but i think the franchise cut his career off at the knees (no pun intended) by trading away so many draft picks to get him. Why did he go 3-13 and Russell Wilson won a Super Bowl? Because it’s a team game, and the Washington team is a crappy team.
The best thing RG3 can do to prepare is to play a little in the preseason this year.
For starters, the Logo needs a haircut
Give Russell Wilson a call. He’ll explain leadership to you.
Leadership cannot be learned. You either are or are not.
4th best qb in 2012 draft
I just hope the Redskins don’t physically and mentally ruin him before a real team can coach him up. I’d like to see what this kid could do.
Well then he needs to wear a big gold medallion around his neck and start flicking toothpicks at his teammates.
What Fletcher doesn’t seem to be able to grasp is that RG3 is already the guy, period. This is a special situation unlike many others and he doesn’t need to do anything because he was given ultra secure starting status. RG3 has his own way of doing things and that’s how it’s going to be, he’s not going to conform to the cookie cutter perspective that everybody keeps hoping for!
What’s a trip to me is the fact that NO ONE is seeing the fact that Garcon was a complete beast on a 3-13 team. With the DeSean and company… What do you think will happen this year with an offensive mind??
Oh yeah… A.Morris also… He’s pretty good…
janvanflac says: Apr 30, 2014 9:37 AM
I don’t think RGIII is a bust, but i think the franchise cut his career off at the knees (no pun intended) by trading away so many draft picks to get him. Why did he go 3-13 and Russell Wilson won a Super Bowl? Because it’s a team game, and the Washington team is a crappy team.
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Agree!!!
There have been numerous, past situations where teams, and not just in the NFL, have willfully mortgaged their future for a promising player that, in the end, produced nothing close to what they dreamed of.
Granted he’s only been in the league for a couple of years, but he’s already injured a knee, the same knee I believe he injured while in college and has spent more time talking than actually doing things. Yes, he’s got some years ahead of him but that, like his knee, still is in question.
I don’t think, especially with only two years under his belt, that he can be categorized as an actual bust. But if we keep hearing more news about his logo, or his plans, or what kind of QB he would want to be, rather than his actual on-field accomplishments, then he may very well be on his way to being one.
london fletcher is and has always been a moron more interested in his stats and getting his name in the news than his team or fans.
So sick of Seattle fans screaming about Wilson he’s a great young QB but let’s be real he went to a much more stable and secure franchise. He isn’t the leader of the team the defense is. Hell he isn’t even the leader on Offense that’s Beast Mode. So stop jumping the guy out there his situation was far better than that of RG3 or Luck. Let’s see how much of a leader he is when his contract guts the team. HTTR
Griffin isn’t a diva, he’s just starving for attention. He has had a crazy start to his career– playoff win, major injury, benched. He should slow down and focus on the game. No catch phrases, don’t try to be entertaining during press conferences.
Oops, maybe he should have designed his spiffy new “logo” meaner.
It is pointless to say this but I feel compelled. The kid works very hard and is very talented. I hope he becomes a truly great QB – I think he has that ability. He really does not talk too much or anything like that. His commercials are all done in the off-season at his request – I am not sure how long it actually takes for him to say “Subway, eat Fresh” anyway.
I like Wilson, a great player. I don’t need to compare him to Robert. I do not like Kaepernick because I think he is a bad guy and just a matter of time before he really gets in trouble or kills a team. Luck is clearly a great QB. All that is irrelevant to Robert’s growth as a QB and he is only 23 so he is still kind of stupid – like we all were at his age.
So hate if you want. I think the Skins will be good this year and he will play the whole season – he is a smart kid and has and continues to learn from adversity.
as a minority in the dc area, he will never be criticized. the fans here would rather lose with a qb that looks like him rather than win with a qb that looks a lot paler. fact; deal with it!
Nuttin wrong with being entertaining but it doesn’t work when you do more of that and not produce where it matters most.
thestrategyexpert says:
Apr 30, 2014 10:12 AM
What Fletcher doesn’t seem to be able to grasp is that RG3 is already the guy, period. This is a special situation unlike many others and he doesn’t need to do anything because he was given ultra secure starting status. RG3 has his own way of doing things and that’s how it’s going to be, he’s not going to conform to the cookie cutter perspective that everybody keeps hoping for!
Yes, NO to conformity! And YES to mediocrity!
Nothing will ever change and work for the Redskins as long as Dan Snyder is in charge. He doesnt know how to run a team and definitely doesnt know how to let the coaching staff do what they do best. Until he gives up a little control, expect a losing season year in and year out.
He just needs to channel his huge ego into a positive for the team instead of real and perceived selfishness such as going over the heads of the coaches and running to the owner.
Well, he already has the bad QB thing down, so this shouldn’t be too much of a stretch.
“he wasn’t out doing all the commercials and all the things you saw”
My eyes were deceiving me because I could have sworn I did see him in quite a few commercials all 2013 offseason.
The problem isn’t his work ethic its his fragile ego.
And the fact that he bought into all the hype in the last offseason that he was “Superman” and couldn’t deal with it when he turned out to be, you know, an actual mortal.
When he didn’t live up to the Superman hype he mentally couldn’t handle it.
Haters grow up and worry about your own team!!!!
I think RG3 and out needs to hang out with Dexter Manley.
osiris33 says:
Apr 30, 2014 9:53 AM
Give Russell Wilson a call. He’ll explain leadership to you.
Leadership cannot be learned. You either are or are not.
____________________
Really, I wonder what kind of leader his ex-wife would find him… He couldn’t even keep his marriage together for 3 years.
be the bad guy????he needs to be a better QB….poor guy has 2 more years before he hits rock bottom
According to this morning’s Washington Post, RG suffered a concussion, bruised ribs, sprained knee ligaments and eventually two torn knee ligaments in his rookie season and got hit 152 times.
This coming season, he has Pierre Garcon, DeSean Jackson, Andre Roberts, and Alfred Morris. They have the 34th pick in the draft, so you should reasonable expect them to pick a really good tackle. So, if you were Jay Gruden, what would your offense be set up to do? Read-option? Ummm, no.
Ol man washed up still talking about QBs to keep his name in the spotlight I see.
I get a kick out of Redslur fans who think the 12th Man would ever compare RGIII and Russell Wilson.
There is no comparison. The only people who think there might ever be are Washington fans.
The only time Russell Wilson sat on the bench this season was while watching Tarvaris Jackson do cleanup duty in the 4th quarter of the Superbowl. Your RG3 with the bum knee and all that hype sat on the bench and watched his team wind down another season of abject failure and hopelessness.
Go home and brag to each other about your 3-13 season, and the 3 consecutive playoff beatdowns Seattle has given you over the last decade. The 12th Man doesn’t care about RG3 or that pathetic Redslur franchise, you are irrelevant playoff fodder to us.
#WorldChampions
#RussellMania
How can someone who had the best rookie year for a QB of all time then had an off second year due to injury be considered a bust? It’s obvious you chumps are just frothing at the mouth for RGIII TO fail because you’re jealous your team didn’t get him. It’s pathetic. Not one expert or scout would call RGIII a bust but you dorks do constantly. Funny how jealousy works. And then you all buy into the media hype. When do he go over his coaches head to the owner? His teammates love him and know he’s not a diva. Divas tend to not be super tough dudes who’ll do anything to win and out work everyone on the team.
A few years of prominence and Seahawks fan now think the world revolves around them. Congratulations on your super bowl win (and the smart way it was put together), in all sincerity you guys were the best team in the league last year. It’s a model of how to construct a winning team in this era.
There is such a thing as being a sore winner though. It will be interesting to see what happens to them when they have to start paying all of those younger guys they got with late draft picks and are now pro bowlers.
Sad. Been around the guy and works harder than any pro QB, I’ve personally seen.
Got trashed for having a huge ego, but its just not there. Injured, he had a better QB rating than HOF Roger Staubach.
Haters just need to quit.
Robert Griffin struggled last season. For whatever combination of reasons, he struggled. A 2nd yr QB, coming off an injury STRUGGLED. He struggled so much he was better than half of the league, including SB winners Flacco and Eli. Let’s not act like the kid forget how to play QB. I’ve seen all of his peers struggle at some point last yr, Wilson, Kap, Luck, Cam. The only difference is those teams were better. Were. The Skins are coming back. No more BS 36 million fine. 1st round pick next draft. Improved D and STs. Explosive offense. Better coach. Oh yeah….. and Bob is back.
Kiss our Grits,
Skins Fans!!!
Mike Wallace was correct to grumble. Even though he had a career year in receptions, there were many early games where he was not fully utilized. That should get corrected with the new OC from Philly and an improved O-line.