Redskins players Ryan Clark and DeSean Jackson weren’t the only ones discussing Robert Griffin III’s leadership abilities and franchise QB status during Sunday’s slate of NFL pregame shows. While the Redskins enjoyed their bye week, the hosts of CBS Sports Network’s ‘That Other Pregame Show’ debated whether Griffin is the quarterback of the future in Washington.  “I didn’t like what he said,” former Jets and Ravens linebacker Bart Scott said, referencing Griffin’s comments last week about being a franchise player. “He said, ‘This is my team and I’ll lead it.’ It’s our team, and that’s part of the problem. I think he thinks it’s all on him. It’s not on him. He has to learn how to play the position and we don’t have a big enough body of work; he’s always injured. The best ability in the NFL is availability and he’s been unavailable.”  In the wake of the report from ESPN’s Britt McHenry that Griffin had alienated himself from the locker room, former Redskins linebacker London Fletcher was asked whether Griffin’s teammates respect him.  “They do like him and they respect his ability,” Fletcher said. “What you saw reported by ESPN, you have a reporter who’s not around the team on a week-to-week basis, or on a day-to-day basis. She misinterpreted what was going on. You gotta go back a couple of weeks. The local media there had written something bad about the team after a loss, said they were joking and laughing after the loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday night. So, you take a story and blow it out of proportion, but the players like RGIII. There’s no disconnect from that standpoint. Robert has to go out and own his mistakes when he makes them as a quarterback. I think he played well enough to win that game against Minnesota. The defense failed. He got them the lead twice. So as you look at him in that game, [he's being] a little unfairly criticized, but as Jay Gruden said, the jury’s still out on him and the quarterback position, which is true.”  Then it was Fred Smoot’s turn to weigh in.  “Well, we know one thing about Robert Griffin III, he’s a bad politician,” Smoot said. “The public perception of this guy and what he tries to personify and what he put out there with I’m chasing the brand. Well, let me tell you something RGIII, you’re a quarterback. You don’t have to chase a brand, you’re a walking brand. Linebackers like these guys, cornerbacks, we have to make a brand for ourselves. He doesn’t have to do that and I think he loses a little of the locker room when he goes out of his way to do those things.”  Smoot has been critical of Griffin’s off-the-field brand building before. During the offseason, he said he loved Robert Griffin III, but didn’t like RGIII. Fletcher, a teammate of Griffin’s for two years before he retired after last season, didn’t completely dismiss Smoot’s take.  “There was a little bit, I can say, probably some jealousy among the teammates after his rookie year,” Fletcher said. “Not visibly, but guys would probably have their little conversations because Robert was getting so much attention. And you gotta think, hey, he led us to a division championship after 20 years, so there was a little bit of jealousy and you know, when people build you up, they like to see you come back down.”  “It’s a looooooong way down, baby,” Smoot said.  “I think the jury’s still out, man,” Scott said. “I think you have to do it on the football field. It’s one thing to talk about it and say you’re a leader. Listen, this is a performance-based league. He has to perform and show that he can stay healthy. Until then, Colt McCoy is the best option.”  Oy. With the bye week officially over, everyone can resume assessing Griffin’s on-field performance in addition to his off-field relationships with teammates.  Scott Allen writes about all things D.C. sports. Follow him on Twitter @ScottSAllen or e-mail him if you’ve got a tip to share.
Former Redskins star agrees with Jay Gruden that the jury is still out on the team's star quarterback.