Washington’s football team has released former starting quarterback Robert Griffin III, the former franchise star who was relegated to the bench this season, according to ESPN.

Griffin was the team’s first draft pick in 2012, and the Heisman winner seemed like he was well worth it—he quickly became a fan favorite who carried the franchise to their first playoff appearance since 2007. His was the most popular NFL jersey before he stepped onto FedEx Field for the first time. Maureen Dowd even wrote a column about how President Barack Obama could learn a thing or two from the quarterback. (Her conclusion? “”Let’s hope that as Barry watches Robert, he’ll learn that stunning opponents with big plays, and then building on that excitement, can energize his teammates, scare his opponents and lead to big wins.”)

But in that first season, Griffin developed a knee injury that would haunt him and lead to tensions with coaching staff. And who can forget that brutal fall in the playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks, from which, in some respects, he never got up?

While Griffin was named the offensive rookie player of the year, he never exhibited the same promise that lit the region aflame in 2012.

By the most recent season, Griffin had gone from rookie phenomenon to third string quarterback. He only saw play in one game this season, as drug-test aficionado and Lord of the Rings fan Kirk Cousins took the offensive helm.

Because the team released him before 4 p.m. today, the $16.15 million that would have gone to Griffin is not included as part of its salary cap, according to ESPN. He is now available for any team to sign. NFL.com reports that “the Chiefs, Broncos, and Cowboys each would be interested in the 26-year-old quarterback once he hits the open market.”

Here’s Griffin’s statement on Who Say:

Well, we’ll always have Pop Rocks and Tootsie Pops.