Once upon a time, the Washington Redskins mortgaged their future to land Robert Griffin III as their franchise savior.
His status as the unquestioned face of the Redskins is less certain midway through his third season. Redskins coach Jay Gruden essentially confirmed that when he said Monday that the "jury is still out" on the quarterback position.
Griffin -- who returned to the lineup in Sunday's loss to the Vikings after missing seven weeks with an ankle injury -- was asked about Gruden's comment during his Tuesday media availability.
"Yeah, I mean I've only played two games and a quarter, so I think what he's saying is you know, you come into this year, everybody had a clean slate," Griffin said. "Everybody's gotta prove why they should be here, why they should be out there and have the opportunity to make plays. And I haven't been out there.
"Availability is the key, so you know, my job is to continue to go out there, get better each week, help this team win football games and the rest will take care of itself. So I don't take that in any kind of way negatively."
Griffin also spoke confidently about still being Washington's "franchise guy."
"I believe that I am. I believe that this organization knows that I am," he said. "Those guys in the locker room believe that I am. There's no doubt there. I don't ever step on the field trying to make a claim saying I'm the guy. It's not like that. This is my team, and I'm gonna lead it."
The 3-6 Redskins won't be a playoff team this season, but the next two months will be huge for the future of the organization. The pressure is on Griffin to get Gruden in his corner as the answer under center. He's got work to do.
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