Robert Griffin III can’t complete Redskins comeback in return to action

Robert Griffin III started hot, cooled off and then reheated in his first game back from a dislocated ankle. But Griffin couldn’t finish a comeback as the Washington Redskins fell to the Minnesota Vikings, 29-26.

Griffin hit on his first six passes for 103 yards in the first quarter and looked to have no signs of the injury he suffered in Week 2.

But Griffin also seemed to hit a wall in the second quarter, hitting only 2-of-7 passes for 9 yards with an interception as the Redskins clinged to a 10-7 halftime lead. RG3 took two sacks to end the Redskins’ final possession of the half.

The third quarter took a turn for the better, despite RG3 taking three sacks in three series. Griffin led two scoring drives, and the Redskins led 20-14 early in the fourth.

But the Vikings took control in the final stanza, gashing the Redskins’ defense on the ground. Griffin was plagued by poor protection all game, and he faced third-and-20 and fourth-and-6 situations late in the game down three points. The Redskins turned it over on downs as RG3 misfired on a fourth-down pass that essentially ended any chance of a comeback.

Overall, Griffin looked good, and the gameplan looked more like what we saw from Griffin as a rookie in 2012 than he did in his injury-addled 2013 season. The Redskins ran a few read-option plays, moved the pocket for Griffin and dialed up some vertical passes, playing his strengths. Although he was far from perfect, Griffin did enough to make the Redskins believe the ankle was not an issue. They just need to protect him better.

But head coach Jay Gruden did his best to protect Griffin from outside forces after the game. Gruden slammed an ESPN report prior to the game that suggested Griffin had alienated himself from the rest of the locker room.