Some athletes have a certain image in the media and among fans that doesn’t entirely jive with reality, for better or worse. Not every well-regarded, high-profile sports figure is quite as charming or sincere behind closed doors as he (or she) is in front of a microphone.

RGIII is almost universally believed to be a genuinely good guy.

In his case, I think perception fits reality just fine.

Check out this email I received from blog follower and Skins fan Mike:

Hey BB,

I wanted to share a story which continues the utter AWESOMENESS of RGIII.

My wife, daughter, and I live in North Carolina and are huge Skins fans. This past weekend we were in Pittsburgh to attend the game. On Sunday morning we decided to stop by the team hotel to cheer them on and wish them well as they boarded the team buses to head to the stadium. RGIII was the first player out of the hotel and onto the bus. The crowd of fans wished him well as he walked by and other players came out and the crowd was having a good time wishing them well also.

About ten minutes after boarding the bus, RGIII came out of the bus and was talking to who I believe were team security guys. The crowd turned toward him and was taking pictures. The security guy came over to the crowd and escorted my eight-year-old daughter over to RGIII—she was wearing a Griffin III jersey and a pig nose. He shook her hand and she asked him to autograph her jersey, which he did. As she was walking away, he stopped her and gave her an autographed glove!!!!

WOW. We were all super excited and my daughter said, “This was the best day of my life!!!!!!” Needless to say, I am buying her a new jersey! Pictures are attached. Just wanted to share.

Thanks, Mike. Thanks for sharing. I am really glad you shared.

These are the pics…

I, for one, take great joy in believing that RGIII’s sterling off-field reputation is as legitimate as his on-field one.

Regardless of current record, this is an awesome time to be a Redskins fan.