Alright, lets face it; Professional sports in Washington D.C. are, and have recently been, at an all-time low. Not counting the occasional playoff run by the Capitals, there has not been a Washington team in the playoffs in over three years. Between the Redskins having lost to the Seahawks in 2007 NFL Playoffs, the Nationals not having a winning season over .500 since they were formed, the Capitals always seeming to choke in the post-season, and the Wizards becoming the laughing stock of the NBA world, it is getting hard for Washington fans to even admit that they are fans, or even worse, associated with Washington.
But fear not fellow D.C. super-fans, because there are two young and talented athletes who could end up being the savior that we need. But who will it be? Will it be Nationals pitching sensation Stephen Strasburg, or newly acquired Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III? Lets take a look and see who will carry the weight of professional sports in Washington on their back.
Stephen Strasburg: I can pretty much guarantee that nobody on the east coast of the United States even knew where San Diego State University was before it produced one of baseball's newest phenom. But that changed pretty quick when pitcher Stephen Strasburg 
was clocked at 103 MPH and took the Aztecs into a deep playoff run in 2009. Pitching has not always been the strong suit for the Nationals. But hopeful fanatics saw new life in Strasburg, and placed all of their eggs in his basket while he worked his way up through the minors. When his debut finally came in 2010, it was no surprise that he had exactly what the Nationals needed. For a month, Strasburg continued to reign supreme over almost every team that he faced. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and in July 2010, he was placed on the DL.
But enough with the boring history lesson, the point is, Strasburg posted a 2.91 ERA in 12 games in 2010. For those of you who are confused as to if that is good or bad, lets just say its really good. Not to mention 92 strike-outs in 64 innings pitched. Even looking back on that, it is still astonishing. After almost a year of rehab and training, Strasburg is back in the saddle and ready to deliver once more. Although they Nationals are probably going to cap Strasburg at 160 innings pitched in the 2012 season, he can still deliver that spark that could take the Nationals into the post-season.
But having a good arm doesn't limit you to just baseball does it?
Robert Griffin III: A product of Baylor University's nationally ranked football team,
Robert Griffin III (or just RG3 for short) has proven to be one of the most sought after rookie quarterbacks in recent football history. And guess what, we got him! That's right, Redskins fans are going to be seeing major improvements, at least in the passing department. Posting a 189.5 QB rating in 2011, and throwing for 4293 yards with 37 touchdowns is down right ridiculous. But some fans are taking lightly to the fact that the Redskins had to really pay up in order to get RG3. Giving four picks, three of them being first-rounders, away in order to obtain Griffin placed the Redskins in a pretty deep hole if RG3 doesn't work out they way they are hoping. But how can he not with such dominating performances in college, as well as in the NFL Combine, in which he ran a 4.38 on the 40-yard dash. Now I am not going to say that's fast, but that is FAST.
But success has come far to infrequently for the Redskins when they try to boost their luck. Take McNabb for instance. He didn't do as poorly as Campbell had in the past, but he turned out not to be the spark that the Redskins needed in order to make it back to the playoffs. With many Redskins fans disappointed, maybe there can be a miracle, and RG3 can be that missing piece in the puzzle that is the Redskins.
So who is it going to be? Who is going to step up and "put the team on [their] back doe?" Only time will tell. But for now, Washington fans just need to last a little longer until the NBA season ends, and they can forget about Javale McGee and Nick Young. Because 2012 is the year that Washington will be awoken from its slumber, and finally get what it deserves.
Or at least we hope.
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