Redskins' Griffin on zone read: 'It's not how I made my name'

The zone read was all the rage the past two seasons, with teams like the Washington Redskins, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks using it to great effect. Perhaps no one found more individual success with the play than Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III, who racked up 815 rushing yards on his way to winning Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2012.

The play is not without its drawbacks, however, as Griffin certainly learned first-hand with a number of injuries. The read option can expose your quarterback to more hits than what a conventional drop-back passer would face, and that played a large part in Griffin's less successful sophomore season.

With Jay Gruden replacing Mike Shanahan as Washington's head coach, the read option will no longer be a key part of the Redskins' offense, a fact that is just fine with Griffin.

"It's not how I made my name," Griffin said, via ESPN. "I made my name throwing the ball in college, won a Heisman Trophy with Baylor. ... It's something you want to sprinkle in and keep a defense aware of and make them have to practice it.

"But it's not something you make the focal point of your offense. That's why we have the guys we have and why we're running the offense we've been running and you haven't seen very much of the zone read. But it is there, and it will be utilized when coach deems necessary."

In fact, the Redskins have yet to have Griffin run the read option so far during training camp, making it all the more likely it will be rarely seen in Washington this season. That's not to say Griffin won't ever use the zone read, but a more balanced offense is the plan.

"Those plays in previous years have been highlighted because of the nature of the play," Griffin said. "But that's whatever coach wants to do. We'll mix in the quick game, screens. We'll take our shots. We'll run the ball. And if a zone read creeps in there every now and then it doesn't bother me."