Robert Griffin III has been a lot of things in his life. The 2011 Heisman Trophy winner, the 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, a college football analyst for both ESPN and Fox, and a podcaster with his wife, Grete.
RGIII is also the son of military parents, which is why his relationship with USAA's Salute to Service means so much to him. Griffin was recently at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., with USAA's Poppy Wall of Honor in the background. It's a powerful tribute recognizing more than 600,000 service members who gave their lives in defense of our country, each represented by a single poppy.
In an exclusive interview with Athlon Sports, RGIII discussed his work with USAA, and all things college football — from Arch Manning to Brendan Sorsby to the specter of a 24-team College Football Playoff.
Doug Farrar: You are in a special place for a special event. As the son of military parents. I know this means a lot to you. We've talked about this before, but tell us about the Poppy Wall, where you are today, and what you're doing with Salute to Service.
Robert Griffin III: Yeah, I'm doing great. You know, I'm honored and blessed to be here. I've had a 15-year partnership with USAA, and our focus and our mission is about allowing our military community to know that they're not forgotten. And being here for Memorial Day is another extension of that with the USAA Poppy Wall of Honor. You know, there's over 646,000 poppies in this tribute behind me to represent every single one of our fallen military soldiers who have given the ultimate sacrifice since World War I. And when you really think about that, it took this many people giving the ultimate sacrifice for us to experience the freedoms that we have today.
So yes, when you go on Memorial Day weekend and you're at the barbecue, and you're at the pool party, it's OK to celebrate. But we also want to make sure you remember why you can celebrate. It's because of the sacrifices of all these people, and USAA has made it their mission so that the world, and especially our own country, knows the true meaning of Memorial Day.
DF: Well said. Let's get into some football questions. I wanted to start by asking you about what has been promised to be this generational 2027 quarterback class. You came out of one [in 2012] with you and Andrew Luck up top. But I wanted to start here with Arch Manning. What improvements did you see from him as the 2025 season went along? And what do you think he still needs to work on to maximize his NFL potential when he does come out?
RGIII: Well, I'll take you even farther back with Arch Manning, because I was able to call the spring game for Arch Manning in his very first spring at Texas. This is when Quinn Ewers was there. Malik Murphy was there as well. And what I saw from Arch then was that he was basically a high school senior playing college football. And it showed at that time. But then he came back the next year and at their spring game, I think he threw for like, four touchdowns. He just was amazing, and had everybody saying that he should be starting over Quinn Ewers.
So when you come into last year, and there's all this hype around the guy, and they don't necessarily have the start of a season that they should... everyone's talking about his mechanics, and he looks weird throwing the football, and things are going wrong. He hit this adversity wall that can tell you a lot about a player as they move forward. And I thought that Arch Manning passed the test with flying colors because of the way he finished the year. The way that he continued to not allow that adversity to define him shows me that he has the mental fortitude and the toughness to make it at the NFL level.
What I want to see from him this year? I want to see him be more decisive in his decision-making. I want him to be more consistent with his accuracy. You know, there were times where he was seeing things as they were happening. So, his processing wasn't off, but his body might not have been in the right position to make the throw consistently. I talk with the Manning brothers [Peyton and Eli] and Cooper, and they're excited about what he's going to bring to the table this year. I think what happened to him last year, early in the year and fighting through that, and his teammates being there with him is only going to make him a better quarterback.
He has the thing that Eli and Peyton didn't. He has the athletic ability to be a modern Manning quarterback, if that makes sense. I know it's going far back, but if you know the game like I do, and you're a historian of the game, Archie [Manning] was that type of guy.
DF: Archie was a runner. Archie was doing designed runs in the 1970s.
RGIII: See? You know ball. And a lot of people are like, 'Oh, the Mannings don't have this. They don't have that.' It's like, well, you didn't go back and watch Archie play. Arch Manning at the end of the day... if it's all going bad, he can tuck it down and make some plays happen. Or as I like to say, he can get jiggy with it in the open field. And I think him being able to have that ability and the passing ability and the processing ability, I think it all comes into play for him this year. And you're going to hear people talking about him being the number one overall pick. You're going to hear people talking about him being the Heisman favorite. And I think it's warranted because he has the mental toughness to handle it now.
DF: Something you mentioned there, and I'm restudying the 2027 class now. You know, seeing it when it happens, a lot of these guys — for all their attributes, they're still learning to throw with anticipation. They're still learning to throw before the receiver comes open. How much can that be taught, and when does it click? Or maybe when did it click for you? Is that innate or can it be taught?
RGIII: I think it's learned. I don't think you wake up one day when you're seven years old and you're like, “I'm going to throw the anticipation today.” I think you grow as the level grows. So yes, anticipatory throws are important in the NFL because the windows are smaller. Why are the windows smaller? The hashes are closer together. There's not as much space, and the players are better, right? You're taking All-Americans from every team in the country, and you're placing them all on the same team in the NFL. So yes, things are harder to accomplish, but as the level of competition rises, so do the ultimate competitors.
Yes, you want to throw an anticipation, but I could have a guy throwing with anticipation when he's seven years old, playing 7-on-7. And guess what? Those other 7- and 8-year-olds aren't going to catch the ball. Why? Because they're not ready to catch the ball when someone's throwing with anticipation. But as you get into high school, they develop. As you get to college, they develop. So I don't think when I see a guy on his college tape not throwing with anticipation, it doesn't mean that he can't do it in the NFL.
Josh Allen was one of the most criticized quarterbacks coming out. He didn't throw with a ton of anticipation when he was coming out. Patrick Mahomes dang sure didn't throw with anticipation when he was coming out. They had rare traits and abilities that translated to the NFL, and then they honed those skills. Now, they can throw with anticipation. So, I think we get the evaluation process with quarterbacks wrong a lot of times.
It is something that can be taught, but it's only taught when the level of play is ready for it to be taught.
DF: Another quarterback who's been in the news a lot: Brendan Sorsby. Obviously at this point, we don't know whether he'll be back in the NCAA and transferring to Texas Tech, or possibly entering the supplemental draft. What did you see from him with Cincinnati in 2025? And if he does go into the supplemental draft, how ready [or how far from ready] do you think he might be in the NFL?
RGIII: I'll answer the second question first. It's very rare that we see quarterbacks go through the supplemental draft and, either get drafted higher, or be put in a position where they can truly compete at the highest level to, to be a starter in the NFL. But I had an opportunity to call a Brendan Sorsby game last year. Two of them. And he has this sweet, fade away, box fade throw that he loves. And it's very Aaron Rodgers-esque. It's beautiful. It's like poetry in motion. I can't say enough about it.
But the bottom line with Sorsby, when it comes to his play on the field, I want to see him play more winning football. And that's why I was excited to see him go to Texas Tech, because at Cincinnati, there was a point last year where he was leading the Big 12 in touchdown passes, but you wouldn't have known it based off of how the ebb and flow of their team was, especially late in the year.
He has all the arm talent that you need. He's got the size, um, he can make every single throw, and he's got the moxie. He was banged up late in the year with an ankle injury, but I wanted to see him go play winning football at Tech.
With everything that's going on with him off the field, with the gambling and everything, if he can stay in college and find a way to get his eligibility back, I think that's the best way forward for him as opposed to going to the supplemental draft. Now, if he loses all of his eligibility, there's bigger questions at stake there. Because now, NFL clubs are going to have to ask themselves, “Are we willing to take on this risk?” From the NFL evaluators that I know, and I have talked to, I don't think that they are.
So, I think his main focus right now should be, “How can I obviously rehabilitate myself and my image, and how can I get my eligibility back in college?” Because he is an extremely talented player. I hope that he can get his eligibility back at some point if he is found to be worthy of getting it back.
DF: Just to summarize what you're saying, and tell me if I'm getting it wrong. You think that NFL evaluators would shy away from Sorsby in the supplemental draft until and unless, [he completes a program and can say], “I’ve been through this program and I've corrected my ways.” They would need to see something tangible for that to happen?
RGIII: Yes, I think they would take that into consideration. You know, you look at Diego Pavia and everything that he went through. The difference between Pavia and Brendan Sorsby outside of the gambling is that Pavia is, you know, 5-foot-3 [laughs], and Brendan Sorsby is more prototypical. I love Pavia the player, but he made some mistakes off the field that really hurt him and his draft status.
Sorsby has more prototypical NFL size. But they take into account all these things on the field and off the field, because when you're a quarterback in the NFL, you're not just there to throw the football. You're there to lead an organization. Whether you're the starter, you're the backup, you're the third guy, they have to trust you with the organization in your hands. And you have to prove that you're worthy of being trusted.
DF: I wanted to ask you about Ty Simpson going 13th overall [to the Los Angeles Rams href="https://athlonsports.com/nfl/los-angeles-rams"]. Two-part question here. Given what the Rams did a few years ago, they, they went so hard with Stafford in that big trade. Stafford has all the skills you would ever want. And they did that to upgrade over Jared Goff, who is a more than capable NFL quarterback himself. Do you think they're returning to a lesser-talented Jared Goff-style quarterback?
And do you see the path forward where Ty Simpson can take over from Matthew Stafford and be that level of quarterback? Because honestly, I don't.
RGIII: Oh, wow. OK. I would say this: Matthew Stafford should thank Ty Simpson for his contract extension. You saw the whole deal with Sean McVay after the draft pick, and it looked like he might've been upset. Now he came out and said that that wasn't the reason, but you and I both know that sometimes, perception becomes reality. And they gave Matthew Stafford a one-year extension — paid him $55 million basically to say, “You're still our guy. We still love you.”
And when you talk about Ty Simpson the player, you talked about throwing with anticipation. He does that at an extremely high level. You talk about making NFL throws. He does that at an extremely high level. He played in the SEC, at Alabama, where the expectations are extremely high. So the expectation of him coming in, whenever Matthew Stafford decides to retire, probably won't affect him. I don't think that they're returning to a lesser quarterback. I think Ty Simpson's arm talent is actually undervalued.
I just didn't understand the pick at the time. The Rams are in a position where they can win the Super Bowl this year and Ty Simpson is not going to aid in that unless something catastrophically wrong happens to Matthew Stafford, which none of us want to happen. So, that was a confusing thing for me. But at the end of the day, they believe that he's a quarterback that can help them win whenever Matthew Stafford is done. And I'm going to trust them in their evaluation process.
DF: Sure. Also, you have a solution for the 24-team College Football Playoff, Paul Finebaum be darned. Please summarize how RGIII is going to save the 24-team College Football Playoff.
RGIII: If I'm the commissioner of college football, without hurting the student-athletes, you have to expand to 24 [teams], because if you don't expand to 24, other college programs are going to go away. Non-revenue generating sports. I believe 90 to 95% of college sports do not generate revenue, and they all are surviving because of football. So you have to do that expansion to protect all the college sports and to protect the players, from having their market cap limited.
If you have four losses, you don't qualify for the playoff. All 10 FBS conferences need to be represented because it's the FBS college football playoff, not just for the elite blue-blood programs. So you give them an opportunity to earn their way in. If we went back to last year, four conference champions had four or more losses, and they wouldn't have qualified. The six that would have qualified, I think would have had very competitive games, including a team by the name of Kennesaw State.
So you have 10 automatic bids for the conference champions, if they have four losses or less. Any team that's a conference champion that has four losses or more, their spot becomes an at-large bid. And the teams that would have made it last year would have made it one of the most entertaining college football playoffs we've ever seen.
All the teams that we thought should have gotten in that didn't, would have gotten in. And it would have been more representative of what the FBS is. Any other structure I would not agree with, because 24 at-large bids would turn the college football playoff into the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12, ACC college football playoff. And I don't think that's what college football needs.
