Seahawks close out Griffin, Redskins
BY JOSEPH WHITE Associated Press
Monday, January 07, 2013
1/07/13 at 5:13 AM
LANDOVER, Md. - The last rookie quarterback standing in the NFL playoffs is Russell Wilson.
The third-round pick threw the final block on Marshawn Lynch's fourth-quarter, go-ahead touchdown run for the Seattle Seahawks.
Less than a minute later, rookie Washington QB Robert Griffin III's knee buckled as he tried to field a bad shotgun snap, the pain so bad that he didn't even try to recover the ball.
Seattle recovered and scored a clinching field goal in a 24-14 victory over Griffin and the Redskins on Sunday.
"Marshawn always tells me, 'Russ, I got your back, no matter what,' " Wilson said. "So I just try to help him out every once in a while."
And the latest debate over the wisdom of keeping an injured franchise player on the field - when he's obviously nowhere near his best - starts with coach Mike Shanahan, who let Griffin keep going until the QB could absolutely go no more.
"I think I did put myself at more risk," Griffin said. "But every time you get on the field, you're putting yourself on the line."
Lynch ran for 132 yards, and Wilson completed 15-of-26 passes for 187 yards and ran eight times for 67 yards as the Seahawks overcame a 14-0 first-quarter hole - their biggest deficit of the season - and will visit the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons next Sunday.
Meanwhile, Griffin was headed for an MRI exam to determine the extent of the damage on his re-injured right knee. He was already playing with a big black brace, having sprained the lateral collateral ligament about a month ago against the Baltimore Ravens.
He hadn't looked his usual self in the two games he had played since, and he was obviously hobbled after falling awkwardly while throwing an incomplete pass in the first quarter Sunday.
In the fourth quarter, Griffin labored on a 9-yard run that made him look 32 years old instead of 22.
"He said, 'Hey, trust me. I want to be in there, and I deserve to be in there,' " Shanahan said. "I couldn't disagree with him."
Shanahan said he probably will second-guess himself over his decision. He has the entire offseason to do so. And, whatever the injury, Griffin at least has time to recover.
Meanwhile, Wilson will carry on. The day began with three rookie quarterbacks in the playoffs, but No. 1 overall pick Andrew Luck was eliminated when Indianapolis lost to Baltimore.
Seattle is riding a six-game winning streak, having left behind any doubts that the team can hold its own outside the Pacific Northwest. The Seahawks were 3-5 on the road in the regular season and had lost eight straight road playoff games, the last win coming in 1983 against the Miami Dolphins.
A 2-point conversion gave the Seahawks a 21-14 lead late in the game, and then came the moment that essentially put the outcome to rest.
On the second play of the Redskins' next possession, Griffin's knee bent the wrong way on a second-and-22 at the Washington 12.
He lay on the ground as the Seahawks pounced on the ball.
Griffin walked off the field under his own power, but he was done for the night. By the end of the game, he was sitting alone on the white sideline bench, his brace discarded on a bench next to him.
With good field position, the Seahawks kicked a short field goal to give them the insurance they needed. Fellow rookie Kirk Cousins, subbing for Griffin, was unable to rally the Redskins in the final minutes.
Original Print Headline: Seahawks close out Griffin, Redskins
Associated Images:
Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III twists his knee as he reaches for a loose ball during the second half of Sunday's wild-card playoff game against Seattle in Landover, Md. MATT SLOCUM / AP
|
