[ashvirtually]

Originally Posted by SolidSnake84

So the sentiment i'm seeing here - Have redskins nation gave up on RG3?

I mean it seems factual that he may have some character issues, might have a problem accepting blame and/or taking responsibility, and it seems that he has a tight relationship with team owner.

Are these problems too great to overcome? It seems alot of people are throwing dirt on Griffin right now, and he seems to be doing very little to try and change any one's opinion of him....

I have not given up on Robert.

I haven't posted here that much this season because I've just been so disappointed, and this place isn't really the best spot to try and keep perspective because of all the passion. With this awful season following the amazing one we had last year that ended the way it did, I knew everything I was feeling would only be amplified to the nth power here so I could only lurk and very briefly at that.

I was reading Jason Whitlock's article today and it reminded me why I stay the hell away from ESPN and why I stayed away from this place. Whitlock's argument and some of what I've glimpsed here is bogus. The main reason is that when it comes this "swagger" talk it's always in reference to a specific type of young athlete (you figure out the type; should be easy).

Originally Posted by Whitlock

...he spent the entire offseason rehabilitating his swagger than humbly preparing for....

What does this mean and how does Whitlock know this? How do you "rehabilitate your swagger"? It's garbage, and it's a sentiment I've seen expressed here on this site. I don't know what this means and even if it did mean something how would Whitlock or anyone else know this to be true?

Originally Posted by Whitlock

...Griffin's goal of playing during the preseason and being the opening day starter were fueled by arrogance, lack of self-awareness and insecurity...

Again, a totally pejorative and baseless sentiment, and one I've seen expressed here as I've lurked off and on during the season. We have no facts to prove this, and that is the definition of baseless.

Why not take the position that his goal was a selfless goal fueled by the desire to be there for his team? IMO, the sentiment expressed in that quote that I've seen expressed here in different ways by a few is borderline racist, and definitely prejudiced.

Originally Posted by Whitlock

He spent the offseason making commercials and documentaries hyping his swagger...

I hate this argument most of all, and it's a frequent one here, too.

When these athletes pursue these monetary opportunities they are often blamed. But what is ignored is that athletes' agents are the ones who gain the most monetarily. It's the agents who most vigorously pursue these opportunities. Do you think Robert went to Subway, Inc. asking to do a commercial for them? And in reference to the documentary ... if Luck did an off-season documentary, based on anything ... do you really think he would've been killed in the media about it?

The only thing more insufferable is that it's the media who created the RGIII persona and us, the fans, who embraced it. The media is the biggest factor in his exultation ... he did not do it all on his own.

Originally Posted by Whitlock

Anyone who witnessed Griffin's week 1, flag carrying, drop-to-his-knees, pregame jaunt...

I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that Robert didn't ask to carry the flag. I'll give 8-1 odds that he was appointed to do it.

Originally Posted by Whitlock

He lost his swagger...

I doubt that.

So much of the argument, here and elsewhere, against Robert is personal bullshit, without any foundation in knowledge that anyone could possibly have and that defies everything we DO know about him, and totally ignores what he did last year and the toll the injury and rehab likely put on him and his game.

I sure as shit am not kicking him to the curb. What he did at Baylor and last year with this team isn't a fluke. He's had a bad season. Let's see what happens next year and throw away the unknowable and personal garbage that doesn't have to do with observable on-the-field issues (pocket presence and mechanics being the main issues) that we KNOW.