Upon selecting quarterback Robert Griffin III with the second overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Washington Redskins and their fans hoped that they had acquired a player that could revitalize what has become a mediocre franchise at best and return it to its championship form.
Who better to understand that concept than former head coach Joe Gibbs, who led the Redskins to three Super Bowl championships between 1981-1992 (for the sake of this post, let's just forget about that second stint from 2004-07, okay?).
Gibbs was on "SportsCenter" to talk about the upcoming NFL season and promote his new book, "Game Plan for Life Chalk Talks." Naturally, RGIII came up in conversation.
"I gotta tell you, my impression, everybody's excited," Gibbs told Hannah Storm. "I'm the biggest Redskin fan in the world. I'm around the Redskins all the time, people there in the community, everybody's fired up about it."
"What I like about RGIII is kind of the way he handles himself," Gibbs continued. "He seems to be handling everything great. And to burst on the scene like that. He's a fantastic athlete and everybody there is extremely excited. I'm fired up that management there -- [general manager] Bruce [Allen], [owner] Dan [Snyder], [head coach] Mike [Shanahan] -- everybody went after him and did what it takes to get somebody like that. They're in a division with great quarterbacks. All three of those teams -- [Eagles quarterback Michael] Vick, [Giants quarterback Eli] Manning, [Cowboys quarterback Tony] Romo -- I think now the Redskins can compete at that level and I think it gives them a chance to really step up and do something."
Gibbs, however, would not provide a prediction on how he thinks the Redskins will do this season, but said that he believes that they "have the right people leading the team right now."
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Hopefully, Shanahan and Griffin can lead Washington to its first postseason since 2007 and its first postseason win since 2005. Gibbs was the coach during that game in 2005 (a Wild Card victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and since 1981 (when Gibbs began his first stint with the Redskins), only one other Redskins coach has won a playoff game (Norv Turner in 1999).
Gibbs did say in the interview above that he misses certain aspects of coaching. Sure he can't be convinced to come back? Third time's a charm, I've heard.
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