Former Browns’ Quarterback Makes Team USA’s Flag Football Squad

Team USA is currently gearing up for IFAF Flag Football World Championship with an eye on the Olympic Games in 2028.

Dec 18, 2016; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills defensive end Kyle Williams (95) sacks Cleveland Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III (10) during the second half at New Era Field. Buffalo beats Cleveland 33 to 13. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images | Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

After Rajon Rondo made some waves as a flag football quarterback thanks to a video of him going viral, another former Cleveland athlete has launched himself into the flag football conversation.

This time, it's a quarterback by trade. 

Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III has posted on social media highlighting his inclusion in TEAM USA’s flag football squad.

God’s plan 🙏🏾
The work is just getting started.
Excited to work with my new teammates 🫡 USA! USA! USA! pic.twitter.com/X9BHwTwLGW

— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) March 26, 2026

“God’s plan. The work is just getting started. Excited to work with my new teammates. USA! USA! US!” wrote Griffin on his post. 

Griffin is just the latest former NFL star to set his sights on a spot on Team USA’s roster with an eye on 2028. Flag Football will be, for the first time ever, an Olympic Sport for the Los Angeles Games. 

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announcement back in 2023 that flag football would be included in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic sports program led to immediate speculation regarding current and former NFL players’ chances to make the team, with several big-name players like Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill and Joe Burrow expressing interest in forming part of the squad.

The NFL ruled in 2025 that it would allow active players to pursue their Olympic dreams. 

Could Robert Griffin III Actually Become an Olympic Athlete for Team USA?

The probability is never zero, but it's hard to bet on RGIII at this point. His inclusion as part of a 24-man roster for a training camp to determine the 12-man team that will compete in the IFAF Flag Football World Championship later this year is a step forward, but there’s still a lot of road ahead.

Griffin has expressed interest in flag football for a while, and while that probably means he’s kept himself in pretty good shape, it’s hard to ignore the fact that he hasn’t played an NFL football game since 2020. 

Once an elite athlete as a Heisman winning quarterback at Baylor, where he also ran track, RGIII has suffered multiple serious injuries throughout his career, including two ACL tears and one ankle dislocation. His durability issues shortened a promising career as the second-overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, leading him to backup status for most of his time in the NFL. 

He signed on to be Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the 2016 campaign, but that experiment was short-lived, after a 1-4 record. 

If the recent Fanatics Flag Football Classic championed by Tom Brady a few days ago taught us anything, it's that even active NFL superstars might have a hard time adjusting to the games' different field dimensions, flow, and rules. A couple of teams made primarily of active and former players including Brady, Burrow, Stefon Diggs, Odell Beckham Jr., Rob Gronkowski, Alvin Kamara and Ashton Jeanty among many others were defeated by Team USA in the three-team tournament. 

Now consider that Griffin will be 38 years old by the time the Olympic Games come around. 

There will be a plethora of active NFL players vying for spots on the team, and if that competition weren’t enough, we have to consider the guys that play the game regularly as their main sport as the toughest obstacle ahead. RGIII will help shine some light on the sport, but it’s hard to believe he can take someone’s spot on an already impressive roster.