What if: the St. Louis Rams drafted Robert Griffin III?
By Ryan Disdier
What could have happened:
Now, before I start elaborating on this seemingly ludicrous theory, please keep in mind that it is just that speculation. I have no hard evidence that would support this idea, and yes, NFL.com’s Dave Dameshek and his “N-‘if’-L” videos heavily inspired this idea.
With that being said…
Let’s say the St. Louis Rams decided they wanted Robert Griffin III as their quarterback of the future and that they have given up on Sam Bradford. So St. Louis holds on to their second round pick, thus squandering any hope for Washington to land RG3.
However, the Redskins still would’ve needed a quarterback, unless they felt comfortable going with Rex Grossman (yikes) for another season. Since St. Louis now has RG3, they feel comfortable enough to get rid of Sam Bradford, who they dish to the ‘Skins for future draft picks. In somewhat of a trade-frenzy, the Rams send draft picks to the Tennessee Titans, as they trade back into the first-round and select Griffin’s college teammate Kendall Wright.
Washington still selects Kirk Cousins in the third round, mostly as insurance in case Bradford gets injured.
So at the start of the 2012 season, Robert Griffin III is the starting quarterback for the St. Louis Rams, and Sam Bradford is the starting quarterback for the Washington Redskins.
RG3’s fictitious rookie year is similar to the scintillating one he had in reality.
With the implementation of the read-option, Griffin is able to perform well in St. Louis. Steven Jackson has his best year since 2006, and after ample amounts of success at the collegiate level, Kendall Wright and RG3 prove to be a dynamic duo in the pros. Four of St. Louis’ non-wins (they tied against San Francisco) were decided by less than 10 points, but with RG3 under center instead of Sam Bradford, the Rams are able to get two of those four non-wins back. St. Louis is able to finish 9-7, which is good, especially for the post-“Greatest Show on Turf” Rams, but 9-7 is unfortunately not enough to make the playoffs in a very tough NFC West.
The good news for the Rams? Since there’s no postseason game on FedEx Field, RG3 never gets hurt. While RG3 is bound to miss games due to his play style, he never suffers significant knee damage, and he is able to maintain positive play. It’s a good thing too, because now we don’t have to see his “All In for week 1” commercials every day. Furthermore, with Dan Snyder not owning the Rams, he can’t label Griffin as one of his favorites, which doesn’t cause any dissension between Griffin and his teammates.
St. Louis fans can rest easy knowing they have a legitimate signal caller for the first time since Marc Bulger. While RG3 is no Kurt Warner, he’s a far better option than say, Austin Davis.
Things don’t go so well for the Redskins, though. At least not at first.
With no Pistol Formation, the ‘Skins don’t fare much better than they did in the prior year. Washington slightly improves, as the Redskins finish 7-9, but 7-9 is not enough to win the NFC East. Sam Bradford doesn’t even play the full year due to injuries, so Kirk Cousins ends up starting six games for Washington.
Sitting at 7-9, the Redskins watch as the New York Giants win the East. Without RG3, the Redskins are unable to beat the Giants in week 13, so New York ends up finishing 10-6. The week 17 game between the Cowboys and the Redskins still decides the NFC East champion, as the Giants need a ‘Skins win to make the postseason. Tony Romo and the Cowboys choke, as was the theme for a while in Big D.
However, one of those aforementioned wins by RG3 was against the 49ers, which allows the Seahawks to win the NFC North with a better conference record than the 49ers. So the Giants host the Niners, and the Seahawks have a bye. New York Beats San Francisco, just like they did earlier in the year (albeit against Alex Smith), which means the Packers travel to Seattle to try to redeem the infamous “Fail Mary” game. There’s no controversy this time, as the Seahawks handily defeat the Packers and advance to the NFC Championship game to play the Atlanta Falcons, who’re fresh off a victory over the Giants.
The Falcons beat the Seahawks in the Georgia Dome, just like they did in reality, and they advance to the Super Bowl to play the Baltimore Ravens, where they beat the Ravens and capture their first Super Bowl Championship. Matt Ryan is named MVP, and Ray Lewis‘ career ends in heartbreak.