The Baltimore Ravens announced on Wednesday they have agreed to a one-year contract with quarterback Robert Griffin III as a veteran back-up to starter Joe Flacco.
Griffin, 28, has been without a team since he was cut by the Cleveland Browns in March, sitting out the entire 2017 campaign. The Ravens expressed interest in adding him last summer but ultimately passed.
“Obviously, his personality, he’s a confident guy. He’s a very talented quarterback,” Baltimore coach John Harbaugh said of Griffin on Wednesday. “He’s had a lot of success in this league early on. We’re excited about it. We felt like we needed a No2 quarterback.”
Griffin’s last previous stop in an injury-riddled career came in 2016 with the Cleveland Browns. He started five games, winning only one of them.
General manager Ozzie Newsome said Griffin didn’t have far to travel before showing the Ravens he can still fling the ball.
“He still lives in the DC/Virginia area,” Newsome said. “We were bringing in some receivers and we asked him if he would come in and throw and go through a full workout for us. He took a physical. He did all of that. After that, he went to visit another team. We just were able to come to an agreement.”
The terms were finalized late Tuesday night, and Newsome expects RG3 to sign the contract next week.
“I feel like we got a steal,” Harbaugh said. “I felt like (Griffin) really wanted to be here. He really wanted to be a Raven.”
The former Heisman Trophy winner was regarded as one of the league’s most electrifying prospects when Washington selected him with the second overall pick of the 2012 draft.
He initially lived up to advance billing, throwing for 3,200 yards, 20 touchdowns, five interceptions while adding 120 rushing attempts, 815 yards and seven running scores, enough to garner Offensive Rookie of the Year over Andrew Luck.
But Griffin was beset by a litany of injuries that included tears to his ACL, LCL and meniscus, an LCL sprain, a dislocated ankle, a concussion and a shoulder fracture. He was benched for the entirety of 2015 in favor of Kirk Cousins and released by Washington in 2016.
Now on a third team in four years, the 28-year-old will attempt to resuscitate his career playing behind Flacco, who is entering his 11th season as Baltimore’s starting signal-caller.
Even if not called upon to play, Griffin can be a valuable practice asset for when the Baltimore defense is preparing for mobile quarterbacks like Tyrod Taylor, Marcus Mariota and Cam Newton, all of whom they’re scheduled to face during the 2018 season.
