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Santana Moss claims Robert Griffin III gloated over Mike Shanahan's firing

Frank Schwab
·NFL writer

Here’s something nobody would have predicted in mid-September 2017: Robert Griffin III and Santana Moss beefing over the firing of Mike Shanahan four years ago.

The topic of Shanahan’s firing from the Washington Redskins and Griffin’s reaction to it came up during an interview with Moss on 106.7 The Fan. Moss indicated that Griffin, who was benched in late 2013, gloated a bit about Shanahan being fired.

“(W)e hear that Mike Shanahan’s not coming back the next year, then we hear the quarterback like, ‘Hey. Mm hmm,'” Moss told 106.7’s Chad Dukes. “Like, basically saying that, ‘You got me out of here not playing last year, the last few games, then that’s what happens. You get fired.’ You can’t do that. One thing I’ll just share with you: God don’t like ugly. So the little credit that he did take for saying that, ‘Hey, they didn’t like what I was doing’ or ‘they benched me and not allowing me to play,’ that’s what happens.”

Moss said about Griffin, “It comes back and bites you in your behind. Because now you see this guy is at home.” Griffin is unsigned after playing with the Cleveland Browns last season. Moss said gloating about Shanahan’s firing was the “dumbest mistake” Griffin could make.

“God don’t like ugly,” Moss told 106.7 The Fan. “So try not to be in those shoes, to be the guy to reap off of someone’s downfall.”

Mike Shanahan and Robert Griffin III during training camp in 2012. (AP)
Mike Shanahan and Robert Griffin III during training camp in 2012. (AP)

It didn’t take long for Moss’ words to reach Griffin, who then called out his former teammate:

A little later, Griffin shared more, including a telling line about Shanahan not wanting him.

Wow. Didn’t expect all this, did you? Moss hasn’t been in the NFL since 2014, after a long career. Shanahan hasn’t coached since 2013. Griffin last appeared in a game with the Redskins in 2014. But the messy way it ended for Shanahan and then Griffin in Washington is still a hot topic there.

Moss told Dukes he brought it up because Griffin taking delight in Shanahan’s firing was “the No. 1 wrong thing to do” and “that’s the only thing that ever bothered me as a player” and it bothered him to this day.

The Shanahan-Griffin situation in 2013 was truly ugly, with plenty of leaked stories from both sides. The comments from Griffin and Moss this week is a sign that all the wounds from that time haven’t healed.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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