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Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III.
Robert Griffin III is going for gold.
The former Cleveland Browns quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner says he’s setting his sights on a new stage. In a social media post on Saturday, Griffin announced his intention to pursue a gold medal in flag football with Team USA at the 2028 Olympics.
“Proud and honored to announce that I will be going for Gold in Flag Football with the USA National Team in 2028,” Griffin said. “The journey starts now and there is no greater honor than wearing USA across your chest and representing something more than yourself.”
To be fair, it’s unclear if Griffin, 36, will be playing or in another role. The announcement came on the same day Team USA’s flag football squad dominated two rosters full of NFL stars at the inaugural Fanatics Flag Football Classic in Los Angeles.
Team USA Runs Through the NFL’s Best
Team USA went 3-0 against the pair of hand-picked teams of current and former NFL players, winning all three games and combining to outscore opponents 106-44. They routed the Wildcats — led by NFL quarterbacks Joe Burrow and Jayden Daniels — 39-14 in the opening game.
Tom Brady’s Founders tested their skills against Team USA in the second contest. Brady connected with Stefon Diggs for a touchdown to get the Founders out to a lead, but it was their lone highlight of the first half. Team USA rattled off 24 unanswered points before pulling away for a 43-16 win.
In the championship game, the Wildcats developed a more solid offensive rhythm as Burrow and Daniels grew more comfortable with the rules, but Team USA still won 24-14. Darrell “Housh” Doucette III was named tournament MVP.
“Those guys that we competed against, they didn’t know what they were getting themselves into,” Doucette said. “They just thought that they were going to come out and play. But I think we gained a lot of respect from those guys.”
Flag football is set to debut at the LA 2028 Summer Games as one of five additional sports added to the Olympic program.
Robert Griffin III Has Talked About Comeback
Griffin won the Heisman Trophy at Baylor and was selected second overall by Washington in the 2012 NFL Draft. He earned both Offensive Rookie of the Year and Pro Bowl honors.
A severe knee injury in a playoff loss to Seattle derailed his momentum, and Griffin was never quite the same player. He lost his starting job in Washington to Kirk Cousins and was released before the 2016 season.
Griffin signed with the Browns in March 2016 and won a four-man quarterback competition. Injuries struck again. In five games with Cleveland, Griffin finished with 886 passing yards, two touchdowns, three interceptions and a 72.5 passer rating. He was released at the end of the season. After Cleveland, Griffin spent time in Baltimore as a backup before his last NFL appearance in 2020. He was waived by the Ravens in January 2021.
Griffin never fully closed the door on returning to the NFL. When he signed with ESPN as an analyst, he had a clause in his contract allowing him to return to playing if the opportunity arose. He publicly stated multiple times that he still wanted to compete.
In early 2024, Griffin floated the idea of returning to Cleveland after Deshaun Watson’s injury.
J.R. DeGroote JR DeGroote is a staff writer for Heavy.com, where he has covered the NFL, NBA, and trending sports stories since 2019. His work focuses on some of the most passionate fanbases in sports, including reporting on the Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys and Los Angeles Lakers. More about J.R. DeGroote
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