John Elway Made Calls - the Shanahans? - and Suddenly Was Concerned with RGIII's Character

John Elway had interest in Robert Griffin III earlier in free agency, but then the Denver Broncos GM made some calls and he was suddenly “concerned” about the quarterback’s character, a report claims.

According to Mike Klis of 9News in Denver, here’s how it went down:

"A month ago, when the Broncos thought Brock Osweiler would return to be their franchise quarterback, Denver general manager John Elway thought briefly about Griffin as one of several  potential backups. But after making a few phone calls, Elway was concerned about Griffin’s character. Elway never did express interest in the former Washington quarterback who was the NFL’s Rookie of the Year in 2012 but had several fallouts with Coach Mike Shanahan, offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan and teammates."

Don’t need Scotland Yard to figure this one out. Mike Shanahan was John Elway’s coach for two Super Bowl victories. Shanahan was RGIII’s coach in Washington, and for a season, the pair worked well together.

Then, it fell apart. Spectacularly. There is a mountain of evidence that Shanahan and RGIII had a great dislike for one another after the QB was injured in a playoff game against Seattle. Shanahan re-inserted Griffin in the game and he was injured, badly.

The enmity grew worse during RGIII’s rehab, and within a year, Shanahan was toast.

He hasn’t coached since.

RGIII? He just signed with Cleveland, which is pretty much the same thing as being out of the league.

In defense of the Shanahans, it’s clear RGIII became the owner’s pet early on in Washington, and for awhile, whatever he said, went.