If Robert Griffin III gets a chance to play again, he promises to better protect himself. He will slide.
Griffin’s injuries began during his rookie season of 2012 with two different ligament tears in his knee. He had a dislocated ankle, a concussion and a fractured left shoulder sideline him for 34 games from 2014-16.
“It just means that when I do run, I’ll be smarter about it,” Griffin said at his introductory press conference, via Jamison Hensley of ESPN. “I’ll slide earlier, get out of bounds when I have to, and when it’s time to run for 70 [yards], I’ll run for 70. It just is what it is. That’s what I more so learned by watching over the years. I’m excited about that.”
Griffin’s first injury in the NFL came in a December 2012 game against the Ravens when Haloti Ngata hit Griffin on a scramble. Griffin, then with Washington, partially tore the PCL in his right knee. He tore the ACL in the same knee during the postseason.
He insists he has learned his lesson and become more knowledgeable about the game along the way.
“I feel like I’ve been able to get a better grasp of how to play the game in the NFL, what coaches are looking for,” Griffin said. “I think that’s a benefit, whereas in 2012 when I came in, it was more so learning everything on the fly and just going out and playing. Now I feel like I have to ability to go out and play and also know what I’m doing, be able to protect myself better, get the ball to the guys that need to get the ball and help a team win.”