Robert Griffin III was back on the field Thursday -- albeit in a limited capacity -- just four months after undergoing knee surgery. Given how important the Washington Redskins quarterback is to the future of the franchise, one question must be asked: Is RG3 moving along too fast in the recovery process?
The presence of Robert Griffin III on the field should not sound the alarms about an over-aggressive plan to have him ready for the season. The Redskins are likely following a protocol established by his doctor and the team's medical staff based on the progress he's made from his injury to this point.
Now, I'm sure the RG3 is pushing it hard, but the Redskins understand his value as the face of the franchise and they certainly don't want him to succumb to another injury due to a reckless plan. Let's remain patient and allow RG3 to follow his plan, so that we can enjoy his spectacular game again when he's ready to take the field at full throttle.
We can speculate all we want, but there simply is no way of knowing if RG3 is moving too fast without talking to the doctors and trainers. After what happened in the playoff game, we can assume that the Redskins organization will be very cautious in its approach to clearing him to play.
In any rehab, there is going to be a first time the player gets back on the field. Every time a player has a day of activity in rehab, he gets evaluated the next day to see how he feels and to see if there are any setbacks. This is just a step in the process, but it does keep in line with everything that has been said about RG3 being ahead of schedule on his rehab.
Who knows. Is that an appropriate answer? It's so difficult to gauge a player's health from afar.
Griffin is on the field quickly, but there is a huge difference between throwing passes on a practice field and being able to cut at full speed. Until that happens, it's almost impossible to tell how close Griffin could be to fully practicing.
It's also fair to say the timeline on these injuries has changed, even if everyone isn't Adrian Peterson.
I'm of the belief that you simply recover how you recover. Some guys take a long time to come back from serious injuries (Derrick Rose), and some guys not nearly as long (Adrian Peterson). Everyone has a different level of tolerance for pushing themselves in rehab.
In the offseason, when there's no games to rush back for, team doctors aren't going to let franchise players exceed their situation and let them do too much too soon. If this is where RG3 is, so be it. He's young and has the extra bounce-back ability we all did in our early 20s. Back then, I could stay out until 3 a.m. and then be up for work at 7 with no issues. Now? I have trouble getting up at 7 even if I go to bed at 9 p.m.
Nah, not with today's modern medicine. Everybody marvels at what Adrian Peterson was able to do last season for the Minnesota Vikings, but let's not forget about Jamaal Charles, who also had an amazing recovery with the Kansas City Chiefs.
So while it might cause some anxiety with coaches and Washington Redskins fans, RG3 should take on the challenge full-steam ahead.
