Former Mike Shanahan pupil Jake Plummer feels for RG3

Jim Corbett | USA TODAY Sports

ASHBURN, Va. – Jake Plummer walked away from football partly because of Mike Shanahan.

In the months after the then Broncos coach benched Plummer for Jay Cutler late in 2006, Shanahan's approach factored into Plummer's retirement at 32.

So the former Broncos and Arizona Cardinals quarterback empathized Wednesday with Washington Redskins star quarterback Robert Griffin III getting shut down for this season's remaining three games in order to preserve his health.

Plummer, 38, led Shanahan's 2005 Broncos to a 13-3 season and No. 2 seed before Denver was eliminated by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship Game. Shanahan benched Plummer for then rookie Cutler the next season after the veteran led the Broncos to a 7-4 start.

Plummer was profoundly affected by the 2004 death of his former Cardinals and Arizona State teammate Pat Tillman, the Army Ranger killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan. The quarterback had enough of football two years later.

"It's not a fun situation and I feel for RG3 -- a great kid, a really, really great football player – he'll bounce back, get healthy and persevere through this,'' Plummer told USA TODAY Sports. "I see great things in his future. But I think it's going to be with a new coach.

"Shanahan is trying to save his job, his reputation. I don't think there will be a Shanahan future there. I think there will be a different head coach for this franchise quarterback who had a great year last year, and the knee injury played into this because I have not seen another quarterback this exciting, maybe other than Randall Cunningham.''

Cousins to start ahead of RG3 for Redskins Kirk Cousins will start for the Washington Redskins on Sunday _ and Robert Griffin III will be the No. 3 quarterback behind Rex Grossman. Head Coach Mike Shanahan says the decision was made to keep 'RG3' healthy. (Dec. 11)

Plummer qualified his comments by saying he didn't "know exactly what's going down'' in terms of the drama enveloping the 3-10 Redskins. But he knows enough.

"I just know from my experience sometimes Shanahan would ask too much of me,'' he said. "I was pretty good. But I was no Peyton Manning. I had to fight every day.

"A similar situation happened with me, and it happened with Donovan McNabb (benched Dec. 17, 2010 by Shanahan) because we had our own styles, and it didn't mesh with what Mike wanted. What I see happening there isn't the same, but it is similar.

"Mike definitely rubbed me the wrong way in some ways. Also, he did some great things in resurrecting my career. Overall, I was grateful to be coached by him. But I was a square peg in a round hole. I didn't fit what he really wanted me to be, and he moved on to somebody else.''

Plummer is confident RG3 will regain the electrifying form flashed during a 10-6 rookie season, when the former Heisman Trophy winner led the Redskins to their first NFC East title since 1999.

"He's not himself,'' Plummer said. "He still has to work himself back, get back to that level he played his rookie year. What Shanahan is saying now, it looks like he's saving a little bit of face.''

Plummer doesn't feel RG3's psyche has been damaged.

"I know RG3 has the respect of his teammates, and those guys will pull hard for him,'' he said.

Griffin, who was last season's offensive rookie of the year, has gone from throwing 20 touchdowns with five interceptions and rushing for 815 yards to throwing for 16 touchdowns with 12 interceptions, no rushing touchdowns and 489 rushing yards.

"It's almost good sometimes to experience some kind of adversity with a year like this that helps you re-focus and work harder,'' Plummer said. I just wish RG3 the best -- keep his head up and just know a lot of people out there are pulling for him. He's got a long career ahead of him.''

Then, Plummer added, "Mike did great things for me in Denver. It's tough to see other guys go through the same situation I went through. Mike will find another job, go do his thing.''