Madden Calls the Redskins Quitters by Benching RGIII

The benching of Robert Griffin III by Washington Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan came as a shock to many in the NFL.

Mike Shanahan's reasoning has been questioned as well. He says he's trying to save the young star's career by not risking further injury this season.

Others, like former NFL broadcaster John Madden, see it as the Redskins hoisting the white flag on their season.

Here's Madden's take on the matter:

“I mean, you know it’s baloney. I like Mike Shanahan, and I’m not talking behind his back, but when you say something like that, you know that’s not right — you’re not going to sacrifice regular season games.

“But [Griffin's] playing is going to to help him. He needs experience, he needs snaps, he needs reps, he needs to get his confidence back. And if it’s a problem of taking too many sacks and too many hits, then block better for him. Get some better blockers, get a better scheme, go an extra lineman sometimes, go an extra tight end, chip a good pass rusher, do something to help him other than to shut him down. Where did shut him down ever come up in football?

​Wow, John! Tell us how you really feel. 

Madden has a point. Since when has shutting a player down for the season ever helped him? You wonder if a lot of this is the reported tension between Griffin and Shanahan.

But the fact that the Redskins have benched RGIII should tell you how dysfunctional they really are. You don't see other NFL teams who are out of the playoffs benching players now, do you?

I wonder if the NFL will have something to say about this?

The Redskins may need to get their check books ready.