This is what Redskins coach Mike Shanahan might say to his new quarterback, Robert Griffin III, when he takes the field tonight for his debut against Buffalo in the first preseason game:

     “Kid, you did a lot of great work in training camp. you know the plays we've drawn up and you're really prepared. But let me say this -- when you go out there, my legacy is going out there with you. My reputation is on the line. I put it on the line last year when my quarterbacks were John Beck and Rex Grossman, and people howled over that one. So it's a little bit damaged, and I'm counting on your to repair it.

     “I'm also counting on you as my ticket to Canton and the Hall of Fame. i'm in that limbo of two Super Bowl titles, and that success is tied to my quarterback, John Elway, so there may not be a ticket for me to get into Canton. you're it, kid. You do what I think you can do, and I;m wearing that blazer someday on a hot August Saturday.

      “And see that kid over there? you know him. That's my son Kyle. His future in this league as an NFL head coach is at stake here, too. So not only are you carrying my legacy out there -- you have the Shanahan family legacy in your hands.

     “And before you go out, there's a few things Redskins fans want to say to you::

    "Kid -- all you have to do is wipe out the memory of Dana Stubblefield and Albert Haynesworth...the memory of Heath Shuler and Danny Wuerful.....the 2000 free agent class of disaster, the trades for Adam Archuleta and Brandon Lloyd, the Jim Zorn era -- 20 years of dysfunction.

    “Kid, it’s  in your hands.

     Now go out there and rescue a franchise