BALTIMORE – Robert Griffin III was making his first NFL start in three years, and part of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defensive gameplan was to hit him as much as possible.
“Yeah, that was the (plan),” linebacker Bud Dupree said after the Ravens’ 28-10 win.
So the Steelers hit Griffin. A lot.
They were credited with eight quarterback hits on 24 Griffin dropbacks — and that doesn’t include the number of times they pushedor ran into him after some of the 36 times he handed off or eight times he carried the ball himself.
“I was talking to the official quite frequently,” said Griffin, the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner and 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year whose career had stagnated. “They’re basically trying to go out there and punk me, hit every place, (to see if) I can take it.
“Today, I know that was probably going to be their plan, just for me. I think I showed them I’m built for that. I can take any hit, anything they’re going to try to do, clean, dirty, whatever.”
The Steelers were flagged only once for their hits on Griffin — T.J. Watt was penalized for roughing the passer in the second quarter — but the Ravens thought there should have been more. Coach John Harbaugh said he spoke to the officials about it during the game.
“Sometimes, they didn’t think it was late enough. Other times, they said they missed it,” Harbaugh said of the officials’ view of hits on Griffin. “So that happens. Sometimes they do miss it.”
Griffin said teams have hit him since he entered the league, and he specifically pointed out AFC North teams and the Steelers as the worst offenders.
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