What if: the St. Louis Rams drafted Robert Griffin III?

This is ALL speculation and none of this is factual information. This is simply one theory of the way things could’ve turned out.

We all know about Robert Griffin III.

Right now, the third-year quarterback is a hot topic for a lot of negative reasons. The Washington Redskins are plummeting, and RG3 is at the forefront of the problems. RG3‘s teammates and head coach have been critical about him, and things continue to get bleaker for the former Heisman Trophy winner. Although Griffin had a superb rookie year, his days in Washington seem to be dwindling down, at least to some people. Honestly, ever since his great rookie year, news about RG3 is almost like listening to a broken record that’s stuck on repeat.

Injury, character issues, mediocre play. Rinse, wash and repeat.

What actually happened:

This is a classic case of counting chickens before they hatch.

In 2012, the St. Louis held the number two pick in the draft. However, they accepted a trade with the Washington Redskins. The Redskins needed a quarterback, and they had identified RG3 as there guy, with Andrew Luck being the consensus pick to go to first overall to the Indianapolis Colts. To get the Heisman Trophy winner out of Baylor, the Redskins surrendered four significant draft picks: their first and second-round picks in 2012, as well as their first-round picks in 2013 and 2014.

The trade paid immediate dividends for Washington, as RG3 won Rookie of the Year honors in 2012. The story has been different as of late, though, as injuries and mediocre play have prevented Griffin from returning to his rookie year form. After leading Washington to a 10-6 record in his rookie year, the Redskins finished 3-13 last year and they’re currently 3-7 and searching for answers. Although the deal to acquire Griffin seemed like a no-brainer at the time, St. Louis looks like they’ve gotten the better end of the deal after two and a half seasons. The Rams have used the picks from Washington to acquire talented players like Alec Ogeltree, Janoris Jenkins, Greg Robinson and Aaron Donald.

After a 7-8-1 record in 2012, St. Louis had a similar subsequent year as they finished 7-9. This year the Rams are 3-7, although their three wins came against very good teams, the 49ers, the Seahawks and the Broncos. Neither team seems capable of escaping mediocrity, and both teams currently have a quarterback conundrum. Lately, it looks like the ‘Skins have made another unequivocally huge blunder (see Albert Haynesworth) and Robert Griffin III was not worth the litany of draft picks.

But let’s see how things different things could have been if the Rams decided their second-overall pick in 2012 was not for sale.