"NFL Total Access" kicked off its 32 teams in 32 days series last week. We decided to score some brownie points by writing an accompanying post each night. We'll focus on one goal that each team needs to accomplish before Week 1.
Robert Griffin III is in the midst of his first minicamp with the Washington Redskins, but his first break in a whirlwind year is on the horizon.
Players will get about a month off before the start of training camp, but don't expect the first-year quarterback to turn his attention elsewhere.
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With new teammates fueling the hype machine with Paul Bunyan-like tales, rookie QB Robert Griffin III already appears to have a chance to be the league's biggest star. **More ...**
"You've just got to continue to focus on football. That's what it's about," Griffin said Tuesday. "This is the longest year of your life, supposedly, for the rookies, coming straight out of college, going right into combine training, pro days, you know, minicamps, OTAs, you know, it just keeps going.
"I'm not going to be sad about it or be mad about it. I live a blessed life, and I'm going to continue to go out and make sure that I can continue to live that blessed life. So, probably no vacation."
The Redskins are fortunate their new quarterback has this mentality. If Washington has any hopes of contending in the NFC East this season, Griffin will have to progress at a faster rate than other rookies in his same position. It will be Mike Shanahan's No. 1 goal to get Griffin as comfortable as possible before Week 1 in New Orleans.
"He's done a great job," Shanahan said Tuesday. "We talk about intangibles, we talk about people working extremely hard, people working at their craft, and that's what he's done. He's come in here from the first day, he's been attentive, he hasn't missed anything, he's here early, he's staying late, doing everything you need to do to master the position."
DeAngelo Hall made waves last week when he said Griffin is well ahead of where Michael Vick was as a rookie. Griffin's dedicated work ethic explains why Hall and so many others think so highly of him.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @danhanzus.
