TV, Like Football: What's Next For Washington Ex Robert Griffin III?

Not unlike his playing career with the Washington Redskins, Robert Griffin III's TV career burned out brightly. Yesterday: Seemingly a likeable, rising star. Today: Gone.

In a shocking move, ESPN on Thursday fired both RG3 and Samantha Ponder. Though no official reason has been given for the moves, speculation is that they were merely cost-cutting firings. ESPN's fiscal year ends in September. Griffin had been at the network for three years and still had two years left on his contract.

A seemingly sensical landing spot for Griffin would be NFL Network’s “GameDay Morning” studio show, as the program still has not hired a replacement for recently departed Michael Irvin.

To his credit, Griffin handled the move was class ... and humor. He not only posted a heartfelt thank you to his ESPN co-workers on his social media, he also went to a classic clip from the Friday: " How the hell you get fired on your day off?! "

He had been demoted from his analyst role on Monday Night Football when ESPN hired retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce.

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Griffin won the Heisman Trophy in 2011 and was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2012 draft. He led Washington to the NFC East championship and won the Offensive Rookie of the Year, but his career was never the same after suffering a torn ACL in a Wild Card game against the Seattle Seahawks.

After only three years in Washington, he played out his NFL career as a backup for the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens.