Nearly five months after a crippling ACL and MCL injury shut down the most electrifying young NFL player to come along in years, Robert Griffin III took part in his first practice session Thursday with the Washington Redskins-and he looked pretty good, from most accounts.
NFL.com noted that Griffin took part in his first practice session of the offseason, and looked "fairly active" although he was working out only with other players that are on the mend and recovering from injuries.
The "fairly active" part looks like it's good news for Redskins fans who collectively gasped when Griffin went down hard in the closing moments of the Redskins Wild Card NFL Playoffs loss in January to the Seattle Seahawks-a game where Griffin was already hurt and left for part of the second quarter, only to return to play later in the game.
The injury tore his ACL and MCL in his left knee, forcing the Rookie of the Year winner to undergo reconstructive knee surgery that had fans and experts wondering if the talented quarterback's career could be in jeopardy.
However, Griffin was giving indications that not only was he feeling great, but he was still hoping to be ready to go for training camp in July and for Week 1 of the season opener when the Redskins host NFC rivals the Philidelphia Eagles.
"As far as the season goes, everyone has seen the commercials and the statements of 'All in for Week 1,' and I stand behind that. I want to be ready for Week 1, that's my goal," he said, as reported by USA Today Sports.
"But I'm not going to risk my career to play in one game."
For Griffin, the start of his injury--which usually takes anywhere from eight months to a year to fully recover from, given the athletes and circumstances--still is an emotional topic. When Griffin was told that has ACL was repaired after he awoke from surgery, he cried.
"It was tough for me to talk about. It's one of those things I get emotional about because it was tough at that time. Yeah, I cried, real men cry. It doesn't matter. And I moved on,'' he said.
However, a little over four months after the surgery, Griffin appears to be making progress in his recovery. According to RGIII, he sees himself about two weeks from being able to sprint and cut--very important moves for a quarterback and for Griffin's unique game where he runs and throws.
Last year, in addition to throwing for 3,200 yards, Griffin also ran for 815 yards, which are staggering figures for a quarterback.
"The knee feels great," he said. "I'm able to do all the stuff out there without any hesitation. That's the best part about it."
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