Robert Griffin III Is a Must-Start for Owners in Fantasy Football

Robert Griffin III and the Washington Redskins are off to a nightmare start to the season with an 0-3 record, but don't bench the sophomore signal-caller just yet.

Griffin's production has taken quite a slip on the ground through three weeks as compared to his totals from last season in the same time frame.

Three games into the 2012-13 campaign, Griffin compiled 198 yards on the ground in 33 attempts. In 2013-14, the 23-year-old has just 15 attempts for 62 yards. While his production on the ground remains a concern, RGIII had his best game running the ball yet in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions with 37 yards.

It may not be much, but it's still about as positive a sign as fantasy owners can get in regards to what may be left of his dual-threat ability. As long as he remains healthy with his knee intact, RGIII will only get stronger as the season progresses.

Through the air is where Griffin has made the biggest impact this season.

The Redskins signal-caller has broken the 300-yard mark in each game, which matches last year's tally of three 300-yard games when he was a rookie. RGIII has also tossed five touchdowns and four picks, but his accuracy remains stellar with a 63.3 percent completion rate.

In fact, Griffin is on pace to have an outstanding season in the passing game, as was noted by Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com:

"

RG3 is on pace to throw for 5,200 yards.

— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) September 23, 2013"

Those impressive numbers figure to continue in Week 4 versus the Oakland Raiders.

Granted, the Raiders have been decent against the pass with the No. 16 air defense in the league, but that's misleading when looking at their first two opponents. In those games, the Raiders faced lackluster passing attacks in the Indianapolis Colts (No. 27) and the Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 29).

Against their first true test of the season in the Denver Broncos, the Raiders allowed Peyton Manning to pick them apart as the future Hall of Famer completed 86.5 percent of his passes en route to gaining 374 yards with three touchdowns.

Griffin should be able to have somewhat similar success, and it looks like a given that he'll reach the 300-yard mark again. The Redskins have also fallen behind in each game they've played, so if that happens here, Griffin will have to throw a ton of passes in order to play catch-up.

Judging from the Redskins' No. 29 ranking against the run, No. 30 ranking against the pass as well as their No. 31 mark in total yards allowed (1,464)—that seems like a real possibility in any game.

Despite the fact that Washington has been good at protecting its quarterback with only six sacks allowed (No. 25 in the NFL), the Raiders have done a great job getting to the quarterback with 10 sacks (tied for No. 8).

If the Raiders do get some solid penetration in this game that forces Griffin out of the pocket, the 'Skins will need their speedy QB to take off more than they'd like in the interest of preventing lost yardage.

That will only serve to improve RGIII's production running the ball, thus adding more points to his fantasy total by game's end. 

Whether he gets the opportunity to run the ball or not, Griffin III can still beat teams through the air and against the Raiders' suspect secondary, that's more than enough to make him a viable starter once again in Week 4.