Testing out his injured right knee, Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III went through portions of Wednesday’s practice and said afterward that he feels “really good” about his chances of playing Sunday when the Redskins take on the Cleveland Browns.
Coach Mike Shanahan said Griffin looked good as he took on a limited workload, but indicated that he would not make a decision on Griffin’s availability for Sunday’s game in Cleveland until late in the week.
The Post Sports Live crew put themselves in Mike Shanahan’s shoes and debate whether the Redskins head coach should start a less-than-100% Robert Griffin III over backup quarterback Kirk Cousins this week in Cleveland.
“He was limited,” Shanahan said, “but I was impressed with how he worked and what he did. . . . You go day by day and we’ll see at the end of the week if he’s full-speed, ready to go. If he is, he’ll play.”
Three days removed from the late-game hit that knocked him out of Washington’s 31-28 victory over the Baltimore Ravens and left him with a Grade 1 sprain of his lateral collateral ligament, Griffin wore his usual non-contact jersey, helmet and cleats, along with sweatpants that concealed a brace on his right knee. But Griffin ran briskly through straight-line drills and appeared to move through lateral shuffle exercises without a hitch.
Griffin occasionally moved gingerly as he walked or jogged from one practice station to another. He alternated with fellow quarterbacks Kirk Cousins and Rex Grossman, taking snaps, dropping back and throwing passes to receivers during the early portion of practice that was open to reporters. His passes had the usual velocity. He didn’t appear to put his full weight on his right leg when making throws, however.
Griffin, Shanahan and Cousins declined to say how snaps were divided during the closed portions of practice. But Griffin said, “I did enough to give myself the confidence to push it tomorrow and Friday.”
Asked how Griffin looked, left tackle Trent Williams, who protects Griffin’s blind side, said: “I didn’t even see him. I had my back to him.”
Griffin called himself “blessed” to have suffered only a Grade 1 sprain, defined as a stretching or very mild tear of the ligament, and said he has made significant strides since Sunday night, when he went to bed expecting to miss playing time.
“Sunday night, I thought there was probably no chance that I could play the next week, and Monday morning, I felt better about it,” said Griffin, who had an MRI exam Sunday night. “Yesterday, I felt better about it, and today I feel really good about it. So, it just depends on if I continue to progress the way I am.”
The Redskins will prepare Cousins to play in the event that Griffin has a setback and can’t go. Cousins, who has suited up as the backup all season, threw a touchdown pass and ran for a two-point conversion with 29 seconds left in Washington’s comeback victory over Baltimore on Sunday.
Unlike typical weeks, Cousins saw more action with the starters on Wednesday. He said those reps, along with his two relief cameos in games this season, have left him feeling better prepared to play. Cousins replaced Griffin in a Week 5 game against the Atlanta Falcons after Griffin suffered a concussion.
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