As he watched the Philadelphia Eagles struggle to combat a blitzing Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense on Monday night, Jay Gruden couldn’t help but reflect on his own coaching career.
Whether or not he was self aware in doing so, however, is open for interpretation.
“If I ever put a QB through what Philly is putting Jalen through, I apologize,” Gruden wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Pick up a blitz!”
If I ever put a QB through what Philly is putting Jalen through , I apologize. Pick up a blitz !
— Jay Gruden (@Coach_JayGruden) January 16, 2024
Roughly 20 minutes after Gruden’s post, his first starting quarterback as the head coach of the Washington Redskins weighed in.
“Say WHATTTT???” Robert Griffin III replied, a long with a selfie his him tilting his eyeglasses down.
Say WHATTTT??? https://t.co/TAHWqvDoce pic.twitter.com/mnuh9VafCz
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) January 16, 2024
Appearing in nine games (seven starts) under Gruden in 2014, Griffin took 33 sacks. And while the blame for sacks can be assigned to multiple factors — including the quarterback — it’s hard to imagine a quarterback would get sacked 33 times in nine games (3.6 sacks per game) without some sort of flaw in the play design. Altogether, Washington’s offense surrendered 58 sacks in 2014 — the second-most in the NFL that season.
While Washington’s protection would improve post-Griffin, many were also quick to point out that Alex Smith suffered his gruesome broken leg taking a sack on an unprotected blitz while playing for Gruden in 2018. Still, despite having two glaring examples of quarterbacks he didn’t put in the best positions protection-wise, the former Washington head coach opted to double down.
“U weren’t prepared Robert ?” Gruden replied to his former quarterback.
The 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year had another response ready to go.
“You told me you didn’t know how to coach a QB who could throw and run like me,” Griffin, who now works as an NFL and college football analyst at ESPN, replied, along with another picture of himself smirking. “So looks like you weren’t prepared Jay.”
You told me you didn’t know how to coach a QB who could throw and run like me, so looks like you weren’t prepared Jay. https://t.co/hrcZFXISkk pic.twitter.com/qiikYkFkpq
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) January 16, 2024
Obviously, there is preexisting bad blood between Gruden and Griffin stemming from the once-promising quarterback’s unceremonious exit from Washington. After suffering an injury in the preseason in 2015, the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner didn’t play another regular-season snap for the Redskins and was even reportedly demoted to the team’s scout team as a safety.
For what it’s worth, Gruden wasn’t the only head coach Griffin had issues with during his time in D.C. But you also don’t see Mike Shanahan leaving himself susceptible to being dunked on by his former quarterback on social media.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.