Robert Griffin III will not undergo surgery after an MRI revealed that the Washington Redskins quarterback did not sustain any fracture in his left ankle, which opens the possibility of returning later in the season.
Griffin, who has sustained major injuries since being selected in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft, dislocated his left ankle during Washington's 41-10 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
Initial reports indicated that the Griffin will likely miss the remainder of the season, but the Redskins received a positive news. It is unclear at this point, though, how many games will their starting quarterback miss this season.
Redskins coach Jay Gruden is confident that Griffin, who previously missed several games due to concussion and a torn ACL in his right knee, will manage to bounce back from the recent setback in his career.
"It's just a bump in the road for him," Gruden said of Griffin in a Fox Sports news. "It's another little bit of adversity he's going to have to overcome. And part of being a quarterback is your mental toughness and ability to overcome adversity, and he's done it in the past, he'll do it again and we have total faith that he'll bounce back and be as good as ever soon."
While waiting for Griffin's return, backup quarterback Kirk Cousins will carry a heavier load on his shoulders. Gruden believes that Cousins will be able to fill in the gap left by their star quarterback.
"I feel like we can win any game with Kirk Cousins," Gruden said via NFL.com. "Kirk is a special guy. He started four games last year and didn't have great success, but obviously has a skill set that I feel like is very much suited for what we do. He can handle it mentally, and obviously, physically. I feel that he can make every throw in the book and we are going to move forward with Kirk."
Cousins, who reportedly asked for a trade during the offseason because he wants to play a bigger role, will finally have the chance to prove that he has the tools to become a starting quarterback in the NFL.
