Redskins Have No Plans To Vacate Zone Read Offense

The Washington Redskins have no plans to change their offense despite Robert Griffin III's surgically repaired right knee that kept the quarterback out all spring and might keep him sidelined through the start of training camp on July 25.

"The zone read is something I feel in the long run helps a quarterback," offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan said Wednesday after the Redskins' final practice before training camp.

"Everyone's accounted for and there aren't many free hitters. The whole key to the zone read is just the threat of the zone read. If you're not honoring it, you're usually going to get 15 yards before contact.

"It was the least pass rush I've ever seen as a coordinator. [Defenses were] just sitting there just scared to death, just watching and not moving. "

Shanahan noted that Griffin's three injuries last year -- a concussion against Atlanta , the right knee against Baltimore and again in the playoff loss to Seattle -- came on pass plays not on quarterback runs.

"The threat of Robert running was the thing I enjoyed the most throughout the year," Shanahan said. "About halfway through the year, I realized we're not getting any of these blitzes that I used to see. The threat of a quarterback running makes [defenses] play 11 on 11 as opposed to 11 on 10 like they've been doing my whole career."

Shanahan maintained that he's not tied to any particular scheme.

"Everybody in the league runs pretty close to the same plays and it's just when you call those plays, how do you call those plays versus what coverages," he said. "I don't plan on having an exact system the rest of my career. The job of a coordinator isn't to reinvent the wheel. It's to try to figure out the best way to put these talented players in a situation that they can be successful."

Griffin, the second-overall pick in the 2012 draft, was so successful that he led Washington to its first NFC East title in 13 years and its first playoff spot in five while setting rookie quarterback records for passer rating and rushing yards.

Source: ESPN