ASHBURN, Va. (AP) - Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said Monday that Robert Griffin III has a mild sprain of a ligament in the right knee and hasn't been ruled out for the upcoming game against the Cleveland Browns.
Shanahan said the injury is a Grade 1 sprain of the lateral collateral ligament on the outside of the knee, caused when the rookie quarterback was hit at the end of a scramble late in regulation in the Redskins' 31-28 overtime win Sunday over the Baltimore Ravens.
Shanahan says Griffin has mild swelling and is receiving treatment multiple times a day.
``He's definitely not ruled out for the Cleveland game,'' Shanahan said.
The LCL is one of four ligaments in the knee. A Grade 1 sprain typically means the ligament is stretched or has some minor tears.
The most severe knee injury usually associated with sports is a season-ending torn ACL, the anterior cruciate ligament. Griffin tore the ACL in his right knee while playing for Baylor in 2009, but Shanahan said Griffin's reconstructed ACL ``looks great'' and that there's ``no problem there.''
Fellow rookie Kirk Cousins will start if Griffin can't. Cousins threw a touchdown pass with 29 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and ran in the game-tying 2-point conversion after Griffin was hurt.
``Both of them will have a game plan,'' Shanahan said. ``And obviously Robert can do some things in the running game that Kirk can't.''
The Redskins (7-6) have won four straight and trail the New York Giants by one game in the NFC East.
---
Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL
