And then you read the comments and fans don't get it.

Rams Coach Jeff Fisher says RGIII is too talented to be done in the NFL

Back in the winter of 2012 — when the Redskins were rolling and their 2013 first-round pick was rapidly moving down the draft order — many Washington boosters were convinced the Rams had been fleeced in that famous 2012 pre-draft trade.

After Robert Griffin III struggled in 2013 and the Rams continued to acquire additional starters from their haul of picks, more and more people began seeing the trade as a push, or worse.

And now that Griffin has been benched twice in three years, and the young Rams seem at least marginally ahead of the Redskins, the conventional wisdom would indicate that St. Louis won the trade, possibly in a rout. Rams Coach Jeff Fisher has talked about the trade several times this week in advance of Sunday’s game — “it was easy for us to do,” he told Washington reporters.

But Fisher refused to take the next step, celebrating how much better the trade looks with Griffin on the bench.

“And RGIII’s not even playing right now…” a reporter in St. Louis said this week, as Fisher discussed the trade.

“No, he’s not,” Fisher answered. “But that’s really not our issue. And in his defense, his rookie year, he took them to the playoffs. And any quarterback that’s going to go through significant injuries like he did, and two offensive philosophy changes and scheme changes, I think that’s hard. I don’t believe you’ve seen the last of him. I don’t believe that. I think he’s too talented. That’s their deal, that’s my opinion on him. I think he’s got a chance to be a really good quarterback.”

Another reporter then asked whether Griffin could still turn his career around.

“He’s just scratching the surface from a career standpoint, yeah,” Fisher said. “Again, injuries and scheme changes are hard to overcome — for anybody, for that matter.

Fisher also acknowledged that if Sam Bradford hadn’t been on his roster in 2012, the Rams probably would have done “something different” with their pick, the implication being that Griffin could have been in play.

In fact, Fisher mentioned mentioned Griffin’s multiple offensive schemes at least two other times this week.

“I don’t think they know exactly where they’re going with RG,” he said on his radio show on ESPN 101. “Maybe he needs some more experience to learn this offense. It’s his second offense in three years.”

And he said much the same to Washington reporters.

“We played Robert early his first year, and he made a lot of plays, and to get that team into the playoffs as a rookie is pretty impressive,” Fisher said. “Unfortunately for him, he’s dealing with an offensive scheme change and he’s had injury. Those two things, a quarterback standpoint, are just hard to overcome. I think he’s an outstanding talent and very hard to defend.”


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