Gruden, the Super Bowl-winning coach, took it one step further than evaluating Baylor's Heisman winner. He called out the recent history of the quarterbacks from the Big 12 Conference.
"I think the big question RG3 [Griffin] has to answer is why haven't any of the Big 12 quarterbacks really hit the lottery lately in the NFL," Gruden said.
From Jason White and Josh Heupel of Oklahoma to Vince Young and Colt McCoy of Texas, the league known for producing quarterbacks with video-game numbers in college has yet to have a big splash in the NFL.
This year's crop of rookie Big 12 quarterbacks, which includes the Dolphins' Ryan Tannehill, indeed has something to prove. Tannehill is one of three first-year starters from the conference, joined by fellow first-round picks Griffin in Washington and Brandon Weeden of the Cleveland Browns.
"There's a lot of Big 12 quarterbacks, I think they have to really step on the gas this year," Gruden said.
The Big 12, formed in 1994, earned a reputation this decade for its high-scoring offense and eye-popping quarterback statistics. The offense-oriented conference prompted Dolphins linebacker Kevin Burnett, a proud SEC alum, to say "they don't play real football in that conference" because of the perceived lack of defense.
Validation is the limited amount of success the Big 12's record-setting quarterbacks have carried to the next level.
Young led the Longhorns to the national title in 2006, and later was chosen as the No. 3 overall pick. After a somewhat productive start, he played in just six games with the Philadelphia Eagles last year and was recently cut by the Buffalo Bills.
Others such as 2003 Heisman winner White and Heupel, drafted by the Dolphins in the sixth round in 2001, never took snaps in an NFL regular-season game. There are currently three other former Big 12 quarterback starters in the league. While they have performed solid, none have come close to duplicating their college success.
The Rams' Sam Bradford, the No. 1 pick in 2010, is 8-18 in two seasons but has been slowed by injuries. Josh Freeman, of Tampa Bay, was solid as a rookie before throwing 22 interceptions last season. Jacksonville's Blaine Gabbert, after struggling through his rookie year, is expected to be challenged by former Dolphin Chad Henne.
What could separate Tannehill, who makes his debut against the Houston Texans on Sunday, is perhaps he enters the league better prepared. While most of those mentioned above played in offensive systems catered to their talents, Tannehill was schooled by then-Texas A&M coach Mike Sherman.
Sherman, now the Dolphins' offensive coordinator, ran a pro-style offense similar to one Tannehill will use this season.
Tannehill also defended the notion of playing against inferior defenses in college. Last year, Texas' run defense was the only in the conference to rank among the top 30 nationally in the main defensive categories.
"I think you see a lot of different styles of defenses," Tannehill said. "You have a lot of teams that have good players and play good defense. It's not considered one of the best defensive leagues across the nation, but there are some good defenses and good players in there, so throwing the ball a lot and going against some tough opponents, it definitely helps."
How much Tannehill benefits from Sherman's presence in college is likely the determining factor if he avoids similar struggles as other Big 12 quarterbacks. Texans coach Gary Kubiak, who played quarterback at Texas A&M in the early 1980s, said he expects to see a smooth transition because of the small learning curve.
"Well, first off, I think he's going to be a great player," Kubiak said. "I've been very impressed. I've known him. He was right down the road here and obviously the job that Sherm did with him at Texas A&M and has continued to do with him there in Miami. I think studying these guys coming out, there's no doubt in my mind you're talking about a franchise player."
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