RG3 knocked out of game, concussed

Robert Griffin III suffered a "mild concussion" on Sunday (Mike Shanahan's words), following a wicked, legal hit near the sideline in the third quarter. Griffin scrambled outside the pocket on third-and-goal, and Atlanta linebacker Sean Weatherspoon absolutely obliterated him. Check the tape right here, via NFL.com. Brutal. Makes my teeth hurt.

RG3 received treatment for a cut to his chin before he went indoors. Initially, his official status was "shaken up," but his head coach later indicated he'd been concussed. Griffin was replaced by Kirk Cousins, a rookie fourth-rounder, who connected with Santana Moss on a 77-yard fourth quarter score, but later threw a pair of picks. Griffin finished 10-for-15 with 91 yards passing, seven yards rushing and no TDs.

We've discussed the elevated injury risk with Griffin several times — it's an unavoidable issue for any player his size, with his rare dual-threat ability. The kid is clearly a badass, but he takes an awful beating each week. Let's just hope he can be available for the Week 6 match-up with Minnesota. And let's hope someone can convince him that in the NFL, situational self-preservation is allowed. It's OK to slide, to step out of bounds, to throw the ball away.