RGIII Attacks Jay Gruden On X, Former Washington Head Coach Graciously Backs Away From Fight
Former Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden sent out a satirical post on X during the Philadelphia Eagles loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Then, ESPN talking head and former Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III (RGIII) jumped all over him.
Things started innocently enough, though Gruden left himself wide open for criticism with his post on Monday night.
RGIII then responded, implying that he was put through what Hurts was put through. To be fair to Gruden here, he did try to apologize in the initial tweet.
Gruden responded back, implying that he prepared Griffin just fine. Worth noting here that Griffin's career was derailed by injury. He won NFL Rookie of the Year in 2012, and the team hired Jay Gruden in 2014. RGIII played only half a season under Gruden, coming off a debilitating knee injury the prior season.
Griffin then aired the dirty laundry, claiming that Gruden openly admitted he didn't know how to coach a running QB. At that point, Gruden took all responsibility and looked to move one.
Most of this is fairly standard. RGIII is a big fan of the victim card, so it comes as no surprise that he blames Gruden more than himself for his failures.
Good for Gruden, though, not engaging further with RGIII.
However, he was less gracious with another former player, Brian Mitchell. Mitchell retired in 2003 and never played for Gruden. However, he hosts a sports talk radio show in Washington, DC.
He had some harsh comments towards Gruden.
After Gruden replied " are a punt returner. Be quiet" Mitchell fired back. Then, Gruden destroyed him with a sweet burn.
I think Gruden comes off looking the best here. Both RGIII and Brian Mitchell are media personalities looking to stir the pot. Gruden, as far as I can tell, just enjoys commenting on football.
He was smart to back off of Griffin, and right to go in on Mitchell.
Well played, Jay.