Robert Griffin III's impressive rookie season came to stomach turning end Sunday evening during an NFC Wild Card game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Griffin's Washington Redskins loss to the Seahawks 24-14 and were eliminated from making a deep playoff run in his first year.
Griffin was playing in his third game since spraining his right knee about a month ago against the Baltimore Ravens and appeared to have aggravated his injury in the first quarter, but stayed in the game until he re-injured the knee late in the fourth quarter.
When Griffin went down many fans in the stands stood in silence with some holding their hands over their faces as he was being attended by trainers. Though he walked off the field under his own power after several minutes of laying seemingly lifeless on the field, the Redskins quickly announced that he would not make a return.
Coach Mike Shanahan said that Griffin is scheduled for an MRI to determine the severity of the injury.
Before the game I was filled with anticipation to see two top rookie quarterbacks, Griffin and Russell Wilson, battle for first year bragging rights, but instead I watched in almost complete suspense every time an obvious hurt Griffin called a snap.
After that first quarter you kind of had the feeling something was going to happen to Griffin. Though the Redskins led 14-10 at the half, Griffin obviously didn't have the burst that you're expecting to see from the former Heisman Trophy winner.
Every play that required Griffin to extend a play with his legs was like a ticking time bomb, as you can tell each scramble was beginning to take its toll on the rookie sensation.
With each run Griffin moved slower and limped harder until the eventual collapse in the fourth quarter as he tried to recover a fumble.
It was such a hard thing to watch that it kind of gets you thinking about the kind of player he'll be in the long run, or even if he'll manage for the long run.
You begin to question whether or not Griffin really needs to reconsider changing his style before he ends up with a shorter career than most quarterbacks.
There's only one guarantee in the NFL and that's scrambling quarterbacks don't last long, and I'd hate that to be the fate of Griffin.
Even with the season on the line no player, coach or organization should risk the career of a talent like Griffin's no matter the cost. Even with a safety brace, you can't risk running quarterback of his pedigree against such a stout physical defense like the Seahawks.
And though the injury occurred without Griffin getting hit, imagine if one of those big linebackers knocked Griffin on his rear end. We might be talking about more than just a MRI appointment.
Still Griffin performed admirably in his postseason debut, but hopefully he and the coaching staff learn from this and better prepare themselves for next year with higher expectations not being placed over their heads.
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