Robert Griffin III sprains right knee in Redskins' OT win

With their playoff hopes hanging in the balance, the Washington Redskins lost Robert Griffin III to a knee injury. But they didn't lose the game.

The Redskins remain very much alive after beating the Baltimore Ravens 31-28 in overtime Sunday after a furious Kirk Cousins-assisted rally. The severity of Griffin's injury will determine how damaging this game is for Washington in the long run.

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NFL Replay will re-air the Washington Redskins' 31-28 OT win over the Baltimore  Ravens in Week 14 on Tuesday, Dec. 11 at 8 p.m. ET.

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"I'm going to be all right. Nothing's broken," Griffin said after the game.

The Redskins officially called Griffin's injury a right knee sprain.

Griffin said he knows what an anterior cruciate ligament tear feels like, and it "shouldn't be" an ACL injury. Washington allowed Griffin to return to the sideline after he was tested in the locker room in the closing seconds of regulation.

"It's sore right now, but he wanted to go back into the game, which is a good sign," Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said afterward. "It's a positive."

Griffin did his best to never leave the game in the first place. He took a huge hit from Ravens nose tackle Haloti Ngata with just under two minutes remaining. Griffin exited the game for one play before returning for four more. He completed two passes while limping, but he was in obvious pain.

Griffin then fell to his knees after throwing an incomplete pass and had to be removed from the game. He officially was listed as doubtful to return, but he didn't come back as Cousins took over and helped push the Redskins to victory.

The Redskins took a lot of criticism for drafting Cousins as a backup in the fourth round of the NFL Draft in April. That pick is looking mighty good right now.

Cousins entered the game trailing 28-20. During his brief action, Cousins converted a first down via penalty, and then overcame a second-and-20 situation by throwing a 15-yard pass to Leonard Hankerson and an 11-yard touchdown toss to Pierre Garcon. On the ensuing two-point conversion, Cousins ran the ball in to tie the score.

Washington's magic continued in overtime with a big punt return and a few Alfred Morris runs before Kai Forbath's 34-yard field goal won the game. This team is on a serious roll with four consecutive victories, and it would be a shame if an injury to Griffin got in the way. Then again, maybe Cousins could keep the Redskins afloat for a while.

He already did it with the game on the line Sunday.

Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.