Robert Griffin III reacts after being fired by ESPN
On Wednesday, news broke that ESPN had fired former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Robert Griffin III. Shortly after that news broke, Griffin took to social media to react to his termination, and he did so in hilarious fashion.
The former Baylor Bears quarterback posted this snippet from the classic Ice Cube movie Friday on social media in response to the news of him being let go.
Griffin was a star at Baylor from 2008 to 2011 and was incredibly dominant in his final two seasons. He won the Heisman during the 2011 season when he amassed 4992 total yards and 47 total touchdowns while throwing just six interceptions. Griffin was then drafted No. 2 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft by Washington, where his career got off to a stellar start, winning offensive rookie of the year in 2012 before injuries derailed it.
ESPN fires football analyst Robert Griffin III and Sunday NFL Countdown host Sam Ponder
The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand first broke the news of Griffin’s termination along with another ESPN, now former, employee. Sunday NFL Countdown host Sam Ponder was also jettisoned by the network — that the network was making the moves to cut costs as its fiscal year ends. Griffin and Ponder are the only expected departures at this time, Marchand added.
Griffin had two years remaining in his contract, according to the report. Griffin was hired by the sports broadcasting giant in 2021 and was widely viewed at the time as a rising star in the industry.
Griffin served as a regular college football color commentator and analyst for the network and briefly worked on NFL pregame programming, like “Monday Night Countdown.”
Griffin also didn’t shy away from making controversial statements while employed by ESPN, both on social media and from time to time on air. However, it never appeared that he was disciplined formally for anything that he had said.
In recent years, Griffin was considered by FOX to replace Reggie Bush on college football coverage like Big Noon Kickoff, but the network opted to hire Mark Ingram, instead, Marchand reported.