This is a fan letter in response to "An Open Letter To RG3" by former Wizards player Etan Thomas
Dear Etan,
Dear Etan,
A very proud adult man could hardly sleep last night. I am a huge fan of RG3 and I was extremely
proud of the heart shown by my favorite player fighting for all of Washington
DC as Fox Sports displayed his heroics during the Redskins’ playoff loss to
Seattle Sunday.
As a huge Redskins fan I’m not happy now, but I can’t blame
RG3 or tell him that he was wrong.
When I have a son of my own I will teach him to never give
up. I will teach him to fight for those
that depend on him. I was moved by the
heart of Robert Griffin III and I hope that one day my son will have similar
character. I just can't agree with the lesson you found in the story.
As a professional athlete yourself, who had open heart
surgery, and then returned to the NBA, you should understand…at least a
little. Did you give up when Brendan
Haywood ripped out your hair?
And just so you know Mr. Thomas, Robert did not go back into
that football game because he was afraid of being called a quitter like Jay
Cutler. He went back into the game
because he is not a paid gladiator, but a soldier, who would die on that football
field for his teammates.
The fact that Mike Shanahan did not take RG3 out of the game
may have not been the best decision. The player who gave it
all on the field was begging to continue the fight, and in the heat of the
moment how can the coach really say no?
You can call Mike Shanahan all the evil names you want, but
in the end Robert Griffin is an adult, and Robert Griffin could have taken
himself out of the game. Not only did
nobody force him to keep playing, but the player himself was never truthful
about how injured he really was. And
this is coming from a guy who is upset mostly at Shanahan and only a little at RG3. (Upset, understanding, and not viciously angry)
Once again, nobody was going to question the toughness of
RG3. NOBODY. Not one single person in the entire universe,
if he took himself out of the game. The media was the last thing on his mind.
As a huge Redskins fan it crushes me that he played in that
game. It crushes me that he didn’t take
himself out. It crushes me that the
coach didn’t step in and force him to sit out.
But I still love RG3, and I’m proud of the heart he showed.
If RG3 proved anything in that game, it was that he has the
heart of a champion. He has strong
character. He will never give up. And if lessons like that upset your 7 year old
son then I don't know what you are doing.
HTTR!
