A former Washington Commanders star made waves with a 40-yard dash time this past weekend, and now he’s making it known he wants to play for the Dallas Cowboys.
Dallas currently has the starting quarterback job handled thanks to Dak Prescott, while the trio of Cooper Rush, Will Grier and Ben DiNucci backing him up this offseason. None of those quarterbacks are “premier backups,” but it’s certainly three options Dallas knows well.
NFL media insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero recently stated that Dallas could still upgrade at QB, and that the Cowboys may have been interested in third-round pick QB Malik Willis. Simultaneously, former Washington and Baltimore Ravens QB Robert Griffin III made it known he wants to come back to Texas.
Griffin talked to Rich Eisen after running a 4.48 40-yard dash for the sports host’s “Run Rich Run” event at the 2022 NFL draft. The former Baylor Bear says NFL teams have been in touch, but did not name any franchises specifically. What he did say was a desire to play for Dallas.
“Going back home to Texas with the Dallas Cowboys, I know a lot of Washington fans don’t want to hear that, but that would be a great situation for me. The Atlanta Falcons being there with (Marcus) Mariota and (Desmond) Ridder would be a great situation for me. Going to Chicago with Justin FIelds to try to help as much as I possibly can in that quarterback room would also be a great situation.”
Griffin has considerably more NFL experience than the Cowboys current options, but does have a major red flag himself.
Griffin’s Career After College
With a Heisman Trophy in tow, Griffin came out of Baylor with a lot of hype. Washington took the QB with the second overall pick in the 2012 NFL draft and he immediately became a talking point of the league.
Griffin and Washington went 9-6, with the quarterback completing 65.6% of his passes for 3200 yards, 20 touchdowns and five interceptions. Infamously, his season ended in terrible fashion as Washington and then-head coach Mike Shanahan played Griffin through injury, leading to MCL and ACL surgery after a rookie Pro Bowl season.
Griffin’s time with Washington never reached the same heights, nor did his stint with the Cleveland Browns or Baltimore Ravens. PFR shows that in six seasons after 2012, Griffin has gone 7-20 in 27 starts and thrown for 6072 total passing yards with 23 touchdowns and 25 interceptions.
In 2021, Griffin went unsigned in free agency before joining ESPN as an on-screen analyst.
Griffin Would Have to Leave ESPN to Join Cowboys
Griffin is currently under contract to ESPN for at least the remainder of 2022, but it won’t be a problem if he gets an opportunity to come back to the league. As his employer stated, Griffin’s contract is set up to allow him to play again.
Griffin addressed the possibility of leaving the network when he first signed the deal.
“ESPN has been great through this whole process and understanding that I still want to play,” Griffin said per Bleacher Report. “I still love the game. If that opportunity doesn’t come, I’ll be giving everything I have to ESPN and this process.”
First, the opportunity has to arise. If the Cowboys feel like Griffin is worth the shot, it could make for a memorable Lone Star State reunion.
