Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III's frustration with the timetable for his return to action from knee surgery is finally settled. It was announced on Wednesday that RG3 will be starting the Redskins season opener Sept. 9.
The Redskins will be at home in D.C. when they take on their division rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles, on Monday Night Football in Week 1 of the NFL regular season. Griffin still needs to be evaluated by Dr. James Andrews and cleared for action, but ESPN reports that the evaluation should be nothing more than a formality as Griffin is fully recovered and had been cleared by Andrews to practice a few weeks ago.
Griffin has sat out all three of his team's preseason games thus far, but has practiced the past two weeks without any setbacks and said Monday that he has gotten used to playing with a brace on his knee because he has to wear it to protect the injury.
Griffin went down with a knee injury in Washington's Week 14 match-up against the Baltimore Ravens. After sitting out Week 15, he returned Week 16 for a clash with the Eagles and led Washington to victory. After that win, Griffin notched his first playoff appearance, albeit in a loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the wildcard round, where he reinjured his knee.
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Griffin had offseason surgery to repair multiple ligaments in his knee on Jan. 9. His return to action has been long and frustrating, and even he and coach Mike Shanahan have disagreed on the timetable for his return. Griffin's complaining to the media about the team being patient with his recovery was a major storyline out of Redskins' camp last week, but with Griffin cleared to play it should all be water under the bridge.
Griffin, 23, insisted yesterday that he felt great, and apparently the Redskins brain-trust agreed, giving him the nod to start Week 1.
"I would say I'm 100 percent, but you can't put a number on it," Griffin told ESPN Tuesday. "No one ever knows when they are 100 percent or what percentage they're playing at. The biggest thing is, I'm not below 100 percent."
Griffin showed just how good he could be when he's 100 percent in his rookie season last year. RG3 played in 15 games and went 258-for-393 for 3,200 yards while also throwing for 20 touchdowns and just five interceptions. He also ran for 815 yards on 120 carries and reached the end zone seven times.
RG3 led the Redskins to a first place finish in the AFC East last year, posting a 10-6 record before falling to the Seahawks in that fateful wildcard game that injured Griffin's knee further.
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