Redskins' QB Griffin Cleared By Doctors To Practice

Quarterback Robert Griffin III, who had surgery on his right knee in January, gave Washington Redskins fans a massive pre-season boost on Monday when he said he had been cleared by team doctors to return to the practice field.

One of the top first-year players in the National Football League last season, Griffin had reconstructive surgery to repair torn lateral and anterior cruciate ligaments (ACL) suffered in a wildcard playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

"Doctors cleared me to practice. Coach is going to ease me in. Thank you for your support & See you in Richmond," tweeted Griffin, the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner.

The quarterback's comments, following a remarkably speedy recovery, backed up the confidence he expressed earlier this year about being fit for the team's training camp which starts on Thursday in Richmond, Virginia.

"One of my goals is to be on the field for training camp," Griffin told reporters in late May. 'It's just a matter of how my body feels when I get back from training camp on July 25th before we go down to Richmond. We'll go from there.

"I've said it a bunch of times, but I'm pretty confident that I'll be ready."

Griffin will join his teammates at training camp 200 days after having surgery which had been advised by his doctor, who had discovered a complete tear of the patellar graft that was used to repair the quarterback's torn ACL when he was at Baylor in 2009.

The Redskins are scheduled to start the regular season against the Philadelphia Eagles on September 9.

(Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Los Angeles; Editing by Frank Pingue)