Robert Griffin III 'Surprised' by ESPN's Seven-Figure Decision

Robert Griffin III's firing from ESPN on August 15 sent some shockwaves through the sports media and football communities. According to reporting from The Athletic's Andrew Marchand , ESPN's decisions to part with Griffin and Samantha Ponder were both "made for financial reasons."

Per Marchand, Griffin was let go with two years remaining on his deal, but "his seven-figure salary will be honored."

While he has been active on social media in recent days, the 34-year-old analyst appeared on "The Rich Eisen Show" on Monday, August 26 and finally acknowledged that the network's decision "surprised" him and his family.

"I am grateful to ESPN for all the opportunities they gave me, just like I know you were," Griffin began.

Griffin continued, "To say I was surprised, I'd already been assigned a (production) team in college football and was going to be back with my guys. ... It hurt me for them. Not because they need me, because they don't ... but just because we were so close and we were kind of getting the chance to rekindle that fire. That had already been assigned."

"So to answer your question fully, because I love you man, yes I was surprised," Griffin admitted to Eisen, a fellow former ESPN employee.

Griffin reposted the segment on X on Monday and shared a few additional words about his experience.

"It’s okay to talk about it," he wrote on X . "Real men aren’t afraid to open up and talk through it while knowing it is our families who keep us going. Thank you @richeisen for sharing your experience and listening to mine. God has a plan and I’m walking in it. 🙏🏾"

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