Jay Gruden to Redskins: The less you say to the media, the better

Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden told Comcast SportsNet that he told his players "the less you say, the better."

Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden told Comcast SportsNet that he told his players "the less you say, the better," according to TheWashington Post. 

After Washington lost 27-7 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, postgame comments from quarterback Robert Griffin III led to headlines in the media saying he threw his teammates "under the bus." Gruden said the headlines prompted this Instagram post from receiver DeSean Jackson, and Griffin himself responded to the headlines on both Twitter and Facebook, saying he would "never" do that to his teammates.

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Gruden said he talked to his team about how things they say can be "construed the wrong way" in the media.

"The more you say things, the more you talk, the more opportunity you give the ‘wonderful’ media a chance to twist your words around, and that’s what’s happening right now. So the less you say, the better," he said. 

"We just have to make sure that we’re all on the same page and we’re not throwing rocks at each other. It’s hard enough to beat your opponent on a Sunday, when you’re also trying to defeat the media and your own team in your own locker room."

Gruden also said he knows that he himself gets into trouble sometimes for talking too much, but "as long as everybody understands that I have their best interests at heart, and I want what’s best for them, and I’m trying to get them to play better, that’s the bottom line."

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Washington (3-7) plays the 49ers (6-4) in San Francisco on Sunday.

- Molly Geary