Robert Griffin III: Fantasy Projections for Redskins' Star QB vs. Steelers

Easily the breakout star of the first half of the 2012 NFL season, scintillating Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III has become almost as beloved by his fantasy owners as in the District of Columbia.

With an elite combination of run and pass ability, Griffin has looked like an evolutionary Michael Vick thus far.

To the delight of his fantasy owners, that should not change on Sunday against a Pittsburgh Steelers defense that is not quite as intimidating as in years past. 

Nonetheless, playing in Pittsburgh presents a unique set of challenges for any quarterback, and Griffin will unquestionably face those this week.

How will he fare? Here is a look at what we're projecting for Griffin this week in a critical road contest against the Steelers. 

Passing

Griffin is never expected to put up gaudy passing numbers in the Redskins offense, but he had a fantastic day last week against the New York Giants.

His beautiful 30-yard touchdown pass to Santana Moss in the fourth quarter has been praised ad nauseam, but the dual-threat QB also finished with 258 yards and two touchdowns against one interception last week.

Unfortunately for fantasy owners, Griffin will likely be satisfied to hit the 200-yard mark against the Steelers. Behind a disciplined coverage scheme, Pittsburgh ranks second in the NFL against the pass, despite not having star safety Troy Polamalu for much of the season, and held Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton to just 105 yards through the air in Week 7.

While Griffin has shown an innate ability all season to frustrate top-notch defenses, the Steelers are strong enough to limit his fantasy value through the air—especially playing on the road.

However, it's also unlikely that he flails completely fantasy-wise, as Pittsburgh has just three interceptions on the season.

Simply put, expect mediocrity from RGIII in the passing game on Sunday.

Projected Passing Stats: 180 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT

Rushing

Like most weeks, Griffin's must-start status will come from his ability to make headway on the ground.

In six full games this season, the Washington signal-caller has produced fewer than eight fantasy points in the running game just once—in Week 1 against the New Orleans Saints.

Even including his first professional game, it's been all roses. Griffin is averaging 13.17 fantasy points per contest when he's played a full 60 minutes, which would make the quarterback an RB1 option for some teams.

Considering the Steelers have quietly struggled to defend the run this season, there is no reason to think Griffin's sensational ground game will halt on Sunday. Through the first seven weeks, Pittsburgh ranks 22nd in the league against the run, performing exactly at replacement level, according to Football Outsiders' DVOA metric.

Using that logic, it seems like a solid bet to say Griffin will have no worse than an average performance in Week 8.

Projected Rushing Stats: 71 YDS, 1 TD

Overall

The amazing thing about RGIII is that even when projecting a relatively average performance, that still puts him in 20-plus-point territory in standard scoring.

By now, you're starting Griffin every week, and Sunday should be no different. Expect another solid performance that lands the rookie sensation well inside the top 10 among fantasy quarterbacks in Week 8.

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