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Kudos to Shutdown Corner's Frank Schwab for calling out ESPN on a misleading headline

I've been saying this for the past few years: ESPN has increasingly become a hybrid of their former selves and TMZ. A report I read this morning by Shutdown Corner's Frank Schwab further proves this. It was with regard to a recent interview Washington Redskins starting quarterback Robert Griffin III had with WJLA, and entitled, "Robert Griffin III gives great interview, then gets his words twisted around."

Before I get into this, let me say that, for the record, I'm not a fan nor foe of RGIII, and while I've been highly critical of ESPN reports and articles over the past year or two, in particular, I'd be lying if I said I couldn't stand anything about the 24-hour sports news network.

Over the past 24 hours, if you were to Google "Robert Griffin III" or "RG III," here are what the top search results would be:

- "RG III: Feel like best QB in NFL" - ESPN

- "Robert Griffin III thinks he's the best quarterback in the NFL" - For The Win

- "Robert Griffin III Says He Feels Like He's 'The Best Quarterback in the League'" - The Bleacher Report

- "Redskins' Robert Griffin III says he feels he's the 'best quarterback' in NFL" - Baltimore Sun

So, no, ESPN isn't acting alone with their misleading headline, but for some crazy reason, I tend to hold them to a higher standard when it comes to the sports world.

Here's what Robert Griffin III's full quote was:

"I don't feel like I have to come out here and show anybody anything or why I'm better than this guy or better than that guy. It's more about going out and affirming that for me, I go out and play, I know I'm the best quarterback on this team. I feel like I'm the best quarterback in the league and I have to go and show that. Any athlete at any level, if they concede to someone else, they're not a top competitor, they're not trying to be the best that they can be. There's guys in this league that have done way more than me. But, I still view myself as the best because that's what I work toward every single day."

 Love him or hate him, RG III's full quote wasn't, "I think I'm the best quarterback in the NFL." As Frank Schwab stated in his article, Griffin's response was much more "nuanced" than that. I know media outlets want to garner as much attention, clicks, and debate as possible, but can't we do that by being more honest with readers/viewers? Griffin's quote was taken completely out of context by ESPN and several other outlets. Some may laugh at him for thinking he's the top quarterback in the league, full context or not, but that still doesn't justify these media outlets' highly misleading headlines. If Griffin's performance on the field continues to fail to live up to expectations, then so be it. The numbers will largely speak for themselves. However, let's cut it out with this TMZ-style journalism. When an NFL quarterback says this:

"I don't feel like I have to come out here and show anybody anything or why I'm better than this guy or better than that guy. It's more about going out and affirming that for me, I go out and play, I know I'm the best quarterback on this team. I feel like I'm the best quarterback in the league and I have to go and show that. Any athlete at any level, if they concede to someone else, they're not a top competitor, they're not trying to be the best that they can be. There's guys in this league that have done way more than me. But, I still view myself as the best because that's what I work toward every single day."

 That's not the equivalent of him saying this:

"I think I'm the best quarterback in the NFL."

 Kudos to Frank Schwab for calling out fellow members of the media who suggested otherwise!

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/robert-griffin-iii-gives-great-interview--then-gets-his-words-twisted-around-202640784.html

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