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Robert Griffin III hit hard, knocked out of game with concussion

The concern with Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III was that after one of the big hits he takes each week, he wouldn't get up.

In the third quarter against Atlanta, Griffin didn't get up.

Griffin was hit hard by Atlanta linebacker Sean Weatherspoon at the end of a run. The QB started to go down in a halfhearted slide and Weatherspoon leveled him, knocking Griffin back into Atlanta defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux. Griffin stayed on the ground, obviously injured. He was tended to on the sideline and didn't return to the game, replaced by fellow rookie Kirk Cousins.

The Redskins confirmed after the game that Griffin had suffered a concussion, which will put his status for next week's game against Minnesota up in the air.

Griffin, a fearless runner, had taken some hard shots each of the past few weeks, and the risk of injury continued to grow with every run and sack. That's part of Griffin's game, and the Redskins will either have to coach him out of that or learn to live with it.

[Also: Andrew Luck perseveres as Colts stun Packers]

Griffin's style is one reason the Redskins drafted Cousins. The pick was mocked by many, because Washington used a fourth-round selection on Cousins after investing heavily in Griffin. Cousins came in off the bench after Griffin's injury and threw his first career touchdown, a nice toss over the middle to receiver Santana Moss that the receiver ran in for a 77-yard touchdown.

Cousins also threw an interception that gave the ball back to the Falcons just after the two-minute warning, the most damaging late mistake for Washington in a 24-17 loss that kept the Falcons undefeated at 5-0.

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