From the very beginning of Robert Griffin III's rehabilitation process, Washington Redskins head coach Mike Shahanan has been very clear that No. 10 would not return to the field until he was ready.

By definition, this means he was able to make every throw, run when necessary and generally protect himself against opposing defenders.

So when he was cleared to play in Week 1, he was approved without limitation, including on the number of running plays for the 2013 season.

"No, we don't have a number," Shanahan said flatly. "Usually a couple of pretty good hits and [quarterbacks] will slide a little bit quicker."

Shanahan attributed Griffin III's dual-threat status not only to his physical attributes, but also his competitive drive to move the chains.

"The quarterbacks that I have been with, they come out and most of them are great athletes and they find a way to make plays. They are very competitive," he explained. "If you talk about the Steve Youngs and the John Elways, you can go through a number of these quarterbacks, but that's what they did have.

"They had a great feel when to scramble. Most of them don't have a great feeling of when to get down, but they learn that in time."

Last season, Griffin III carried the ball 120 times for 815 yards and seven touchdowns, including a 76-yard touchdown run against the Minnesota Vikings.

While he did suffer his initial knee injury during a scramble against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 14, he expressed no apprehension about running in the future.

"[Getting hit] will feel good. Football is football. You're going to get hit when you play the game," Griffin III said with a shrug. "I don't really worry about it. Just go out there and play. That's what we get up every morning to do. We enjoy it.

"I'm not afraid of it. I'm not really anxious about it, just go out there and play."

Asked if he was concerned about capping his number of runs this season, Griffin III said he just needs to make enough plays for his team to win.

"I try to stay away from the numbers. You guys (the media) tend to take care of that pretty good," he said with a grin. "It is what it is, whatever that number ends up being.

"I just want to make sure I go out there and play tough, play hard, play fearless, and at the same time, play smart."

Part of playing smart will be to take advantage of the sidelines and the slide to protect himself against unnecessary hits.

"I think it's ingrained in my head now. I'll be getting down on Monday night," he said. "Football is football, man. You step on that field, you've got to play.

"Your adrenaline is running so you usually I don't feel the hits until the next day anyway, so we'll see how I feel the day after."

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