Tag: John Riggins

40 Years ago the NFL MVP resided in Washington

Mark Moseley is the only kicker in NFL history win MVP.

Washington Redskins 1982 History for $300 please.

Answer, “He played 13 seasons for Washington, was a two-time Pro Bowler, once an All-Pro and the 1982 NFL MVP.”

Contestant #1: “Who is Joe Theismann?”

Jeopardy Host: “No”

Contestant #2: “Who is John Riggins?”

Jeopardy Host: “No”

Question: “Who is Art Monk?”

Jeopardy Host: “No, I’m sorry contestants, those are all good responses, but they are not the correct response.”

Theismann was also a two-time Pro Bowler and once All-Pro. He also finished fourth in the Associated Press MVP balloting in this 1982 season. Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts was second, Raiders running back Marcus Allen third and Cowboys quarterback Danny White was fifth.

Riggins was an All-Pro once and Pro Bowler once (hard to believe only once with several very good seasons). He was also the Super Bowl XVII MVP and the following season set a then NFL record rushing for 24 touchdowns.

Monk was a three-time Super Bowl champ and three-time Pro-Bowler. He set an NFL single-season record of 106 receptions in 1984 and led the NFL in 1985 with 81.7 receiving yards per game. He retired the all-time receptions leader in NFL history.

The correct response we are looking for is kicker Mark Moseley. Yes, a kicker was voted NFL MVP.

How is that AP writers voted the Washington kicker the NFL MVP for the 1982 season?

For starters, Washington was the No. 1 seed in the NFC finishing 8-1 in the regular season shortened by strike. In addition, it was also the manner in which they won games.

In the opener at Philadelphia, Moseley connected from 48 yards, sending the game into overtime and then his field goal won the game.

In the December cold at St Louis, Washington couldn’t get the ball in the end zone, but Moseley came through on all four field goal attempts for a 12-7 victory over the Cardinals.

The following week at RFK Moseley was accurate on all three field goal attempts in a 15-14 win over the Giants. His last field goal came with only four seconds remaining as snow was falling on the muddy grass field. It also broke the then NFL record of 20 consecutive field goals made, giving Moseley 21 for the new record.

Moseley would make his next two attempts in New Orleans the following week, extending his consecutive streak to 23 (dating back to the end of the ’81 season) before missing in the season home finale against the Cardinals. Moseley would finish the ’82 season making 20 of 21 field goals for a 95.2% conversion rate.

40 years ago the 1982 Washington Redskins provided us the launching of the “Hogs,” Riggins SB XVII MVP, Washington finishing 12-1 in the strike-shortened season, Washington Super Bowl XVII champs, defeating Miami 27-17 and yes, their kicker, Mark Moseley was voted NFL MVP.

Washington football’s great history with ‘The Hogs’

A historical perspective on “The Hogs.”

Just when you think it is just about all over, the negative news regarding the Washington football franchise and Daniel Snyder continues.

Washington football’s great history with “The Hogs”

Apparently, the “Hogs” themselves have threatened Daniel Snyder with a lawsuit. Who were the “Hogs?” How did the “Hogs” launch?

Joe Bugel who named his offensive lineman the “Hogs” had come to Washington in 1981 as part of Joe Gibbs’ original coaching staff for the Redskins. Washington drafted Mark May (1st round) and Russ Grimm (3rd round), and grabbed Joe Jacoby an undrafted lineman out of Louisville. They were in the lineup early in that first season as the team struggled to an 0-5 start; however, progressed wonderfully to finish 8-8.

From there the foundation was laid; Washington would win the NFC East the next three seasons, and it would win the NFC four times and three Super Bowls over Joe Gibbs’ first reign as head coach (1981-92).

Joe Gibbs led Washington to three Super Bowl victories, each time with a different quarterback and featured running back. Yet, the constant was Gibbs himself and several original “Hogs:” Russ Grimm, Joe Jacoby, Jeff Bostic and Don Warren (tight end). Tight end Rick “Doc” Walker, guard Fred Dean, guard Mark May and tackle George Starke were the other original members in 1982.

John Riggins’ rugged style led to him being an honorary “Hog” and over the years as linemen and tight ends retired, new members were brought into the “Hogs” family.

Starke, the eldest of the original “Hogs”, retired following the 1984 season while Dean had been the first to depart, his last game as a “Hog” being Super Bowl XVII. May was moved from guard to Starke’s right tackle position, and Washington obtained guard R.C Thielmann.

1985 was Walker’s and Riggins’s last NFL season. And when Russ Grimm went down in the 1987 season, Raleigh McKenzie was ready to step right in at left guard as the team won the NFC and Super Bowl XXII over Denver 42-10.

Without question, the best of the Hogs, who was not an original member was tackle Jim Lachey. Lachey would come in 1988 in the trade of Jay Schroeder to the Raiders. He originally played right tackle, moving May back to right guard. Later, Lachey was moved to left tackle, with Jacoby switching to right tackle.

May’s last season in Washington was the ’89 season; McKenzie’s versatility meant he played right guard, and Ed Simmons started 11 1990 games when Joe Jacoby was injured.

The best performance by the unit occurred in the 1991 season when Washington was 14-2, then won each of their playoff games by multiple scores and SB XXVI 37-24 over Buffalo after leading 37-10 and celebrating on the sidelines.

That ’91 team had added Mark Schlereth at right guard, and the flexible McKenzie was most often at left guard when Grimm suffered injuries. Yet the Hogs led Washington to be the highest-scoring team in the NFL; Mark Rypien passed for 3,564 yards, 28 touchdowns, and in all 16 regular season games was sacked only seven times!

After Gibbs retired following the 1992 season, the winning decreased, and the “Hogs” were retiring, but there were some other notable additions as “Hogs” over the next few years such as Ray Brown and Tre’ Johnson.

Yes, the “Hogs” were awesome; they brought Washington fans so much joy, so much winning, the Hogettes, and even Hogfarmers Charitable Foundation, supporting families who suffer from pediatric cancer.

In fact, there were some fans that desired the name “Hogs” over the “Commanders” as the franchise was rebranding.

Now, we have the very unfortunate news that the attempt to provide the team a mascot (a hog) is going to be met with a legal suit by some of the original “Hogs?”

The original “Hogs” feel the Commanders have no right to profit off of the name given to them some 40 years ago by Bugel. I loved the “Hogs” and still love the “Hogs.” Yet, honestly, did the group ever pursue legal standing over the last 40 years? Why only now?

 

The Hogs at odds with Commanders, Snyder ahead of Sunday’s tribute to the group

The team is honoring Joe Gibbs and “The Hogs” Sunday.

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As if the 2022 Washington Commanders’ season couldn’t become any more bizarre, now you have several team legends at odds with the team and owner, Daniel Snyder.

“The Hogs,” one of the most iconic groups in Washington’s franchise’s history, formed O-Line Entertainment LLC earlier this year and filed a trademark for the term “Hogs.” On Sunday against the Cleveland Browns, the Commanders are set to The Hogs with Hall of Fame head coach Joe Gibbs present.

An excerpt of the letter from an attorney representing “The Hogs,” courtesy of JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington:

Daniel Snyder and the Washington Commanders are trying to profit off the original HOGS legacy by taking that trademark and associated goodwill and brand equity of the original HOGS. The Commanders are using the original HOGS brand for commercial purposes with NO compensation to the men who’s blood & sweat equity built the original HOGS 40 years ago.

Former Washington offensive linemen Joe Jacoby, Mark May, Fred Dean, tight end Doc Walker and legendary running back John Riggins are named as potential plaintiffs against the Commanders in the letter.

Washington has planned to honor The Hogs for months, and Gibbs will serve as an honorary captain. At halftime, the Commanders will unveil their new team mascot. It will be a dog or a hog.

Riggins has long been outspoken against Snyder and has been more vocal surrounding the team’s new name. Walker does a Commanders’ pregame show for Team 980 and remains a vocal supporter of the team on the field.

Legendary former offensive line coach Joe Bugel nicknamed his offensive line “The Hogs” in 1982, and it stuck with the group through the franchise’s glory years. Riggins was an honorary member of the group.

The team offered the following statement:

 

Remembering Washington football at RFK Stadium in the 1980s

The greatest decade in franchise history. We share some of the most incredible memories from RFK Stadium in the 1980s.

Joe Gibbs (1981-1992) and his teams were 124-60 (.673) which is slightly less successful than George Allen’s tenure in Washington. However, in the 1980s, Gibbs produced four NFC Championship games, three NFC Championships, three Super Bowls and two Super Bowl victories. Joe Gibbs was an astonishing 11-3 in the playoffs in the ’80s.

Gibbs in 1981, lost his first five games and not one was a single-score game. Gibbs later said he feared he may not win an NFL game before he was fired.

I recall little Joe Washington having big games in RFK wins over the Patriots and Lions. In that Lions game, the lead changed hands six times when Mark Moseley won it with a field goal 33-31. Some may recall Mike Nelms with a 75-yard punt return touchdown in that Patriots win as well.

Washington turned it around in that ’81 season winning their final five games in RFK, finishing the season 8-8. RFK was buzzing as fans excitedly anticipated 1982.

From 1982 I’ll always recall Joe Theismann going deep to Charley Brown in the 13-9 win over the Eagles. I was present at RFK when Joe Theismann executed a great block, allowing Joe Washington to score. RFK went crazy on that play! Moseley kicked the game-winner in the snow in the 15-14 win over the Giants.

The ’82 playoffs at RFK were magical. Art Monk was injured, but Alvin Garrett was awesome, hauling in three Joe Theismann touchdown passes in the 31-7 victory over the Lions.

The next week, John Riggins rushed for 185 yards and bowed to the RFK crowd; Washington defeated the Vikings 21-7, and late, fans started chanting, “We want Dallas.”

The NFC Championship game against Dallas was so intense as RFK fans during warmups chanted, “we want Dallas.” Defensive end Dexter Manley knocked quarterback Danny White out of the game (literally), then rushed Gary Hogeboom, and tipped his screen pass, which Darryl Grant intercepted for a touchdown. To this day, I still believe that play and moment was the greatest experienced at RFK, as Washington defeated Dallas 31-17 to go to Super Bowl XVII.

The ’83 season saw Washington down 35-20, comeback to beat the Raiders 37-35 when Theismann found Washington in the end zone. The season finale at RFK was ugly when fans booed the Redskins, trailing the Giants 19-7. But the team recovered to win 31-22.

The Rams came to town for the playoffs and were crushed 51-7, and the 49ers were down 21-0. Washington held on to win 24-21 earning a trip to Super Bowl XVIII.

In 1984 at RFK, Washington crushed Dallas 34-14; Art Monk broke the single-season reception record (106) in one of the most exciting season finales, I recall, a 29-27 win over the Cardinals.

Joe Theismann on a 1985 Monday Night Football game brought RFK to a stilled silence when he suffered a career-ending compound fracture of the lower leg. Jay Schroeder’s first pass was a bomb to Art Monk as Washington came from behind to defeat the Giants 23-21.

The most exciting 1986 win at RFK came when Washington trailed the Vikings 38-26, rallied to tie at 38-38, and then Gary Clark caught a short pass and ran down the left sideline for a thrilling 44-38 win. The most anticipated RFK game was the Giants game with both teams at 11-2, but the Giants won 24-14 and went on to win Super Bowl XXI.

In the 1987 NFC Championship game, Doug Williams had his worst day as a Washington quarterback. But Williams did find Gary Clark in the end zone for a 17-10 lead. The Redskins defensive stand inside the ten to end the game was epic as Joe Gibbs, knees on a towel, actually turned pale, later saying he thought he was going to pass out.

In 1988, Washington trailed Pittsburgh 29-20 late, but then Williams rallied the team with two scores for a 30-29 win as Williams passed for 430 yards. Later in the season, the Saints led at RFK 24-17, but Williams again led and Washington won 27-24.

What I have always remembered about RFK games in 1989 is the heart-breaking losses in the season’s first two games. Raul Allegre kicked a 52-yard field goal as the Giants won 27-24. The next week Washington led the Eagles 20-0. Gerald Riggs rushed for 221 yards, yet the Eagles rallied for a 42-37 win.

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Remembering this week 40 years ago in Washington NFL history

We continue our look back at the 1982 season when Joe Gibbs, Joe Theisman, John Riggins, The Hogs and Dexter Manley ruled Washington.

40 years ago, the 1982 Washington Redskins became the first team in franchise history to win a Super Bowl.

This very week, 40 years ago, NFL fans were so excited to see their teams get back in action.

The 1982 season had begun with the first two weeks of the season having a dark cloud of suspicion over them. Each day of those two weeks, analysts and the press wondered aloud and through the print media whether the NFL would actually see a strike take place during the season.

The prior season, Joe Gibbs’ first in Washington had started horribly, as Gibbs brought in his Air Coryell offense for Joe Theismann to orchestrate. However, Washington lost their first five games, and Gibbs would later say he actually kept thinking if he would be fired before he ever won his first game as an NFL head coach.

But the 1981 team rebounded as Gibbs determined to go more with his personnel, shape more of a ball-control offense using running backs John Riggins and Joe Washington. The team won eight of their last eleven games, finishing 8-8.

Having drafted such players in 1981 as Mark May, Russ Grimm, Dexter Manley, Darryl Grant and Clint Didier and signed Joe Jacoby as an undrafted free agent, the 1982 season was one of promise and hope.

The season had opened Sept. 12 with Washington the underdog traveling to Philadelphia who had been to the Super Bowl in 1980 and the playoffs in 1979 and 1981. Trailing 27-14 entering the final quarter, the Redskins roared back, winning 37-34 in overtime.

Week 2 saw Washington again a road team, this time at Tampa Bay. Joe Gibbs was returning to Tampa for the first time as a head coach. Gibbs had earlier been on the Bucs staff under John McKay.

In a game that saw heavy amounts of rain, Washington slid their way to a 21-13 victory in Tampa. Washington was 2-0, a strike was officially announced the next night and the nation lost the NFL for the next 57 days. NFL games in weeks three through ten were lost.

November 21, Washington would be back in action, but because of the scheduled game being in New York against the Giants, Redskins fans were still unable to see their favorite team play at home in RFK. Washington would not play a game at RFK in the 1982 season until November 28, their second game of the season against the Eagles.

40 years ago this week, Washington was 2-0, coming off of an NFL Strike, about to begin for a second time a season when the franchise would go on to win its first Super Bowl (XVII).

John Riggins does not like ‘Commanders’

John Riggins had some strong takes on the new name and seeing his name on the back of a Commanders’ jersey.

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The Washington all-time leading rusher John Riggins does not like the new name, “Commanders.”

On his podcast, “The John Riggins Show” with co-host Tod Castleberry, Riggins looked back to the second year of Daniel Snyder’s ownership. Riggins told of how it was at a downtown restaurant and Riggins even then (2000) suggested to Snyder they should change the name of the team.

Riggins said regarding the Redskins, he really felt it was to honor their people. But after he retired and was hearing of how it offended increasing numbers, he had gotten to the point he was for the name change.

Knowing the name change was coming, Riggins said he never dreamed he was going to feel the way he actually now feels once the new name was adopted last week.

“I feel completely disenfranchised,” said Riggins. “I can’t understand how anyone who once played under the old franchise name could possibly want to be a part of anything to do with the Washington Commanders.”

He acknowledged that for his old teammates and others who played for the Redskins he understands every one of them has to make their own decisions, and are free to handle this how they choose to but also added, “For the guys who showed up last week I look at them and say, ‘What’s wrong with you? Don’t you get it? You were invited to your own funeral.’”

A once great franchise through the Joe Gibbs years experienced hard times most of the last 25 years. The last decade they have been losing fans in large numbers each season to where now they were last in attendance with each home game seeing an inexcusable large number of visiting team’s fans.

Castlebury interjected that “All they have now is hope, every year they are selling hope.”

Regarding possible John Riggins’ Washington Commanders jerseys, Riggins responded, “That makes me feel filthy. I feel dirty, I don’t want anything to do with it. Maybe I will change. Maybe I need a little more time, I don’t know.  It just doesn’t feel right to me.”

Riggins sadly talked of how he might describe himself, “John Riggins, played for the  ______. Well, who did he play for? I don’t know, can’t say that can you?”

Riggins (age 72) will always be remembered for the greatest, most significant play in Redskins history. In Super Bowl XVII Washington trailed Miami 17-13 in the final quarter facing a fourth & 1 at the Miami 42. Riggins broke a tackle (Don McNeal) and raced for the go-ahead touchdown. Washington scored again to win 27-17 and Riggins was the MVP gaining 166 yards on the day.

No. 44 set an NFL record at the time of 24 rushing touchdowns in the 1983 season at age 34 as Washington finished 14-2, won the NFC, and were defeated by the Los Angeles Raiders in Super Bowl XVIII. He also led the NFL in rushing touchdowns the next season (1984) at age 35.

What running backs have had 100-yard games in the Super Bowl?

What running backs have broken the 100-yard mark in Super Bowl history? The record-holder is a surprise, Washington’s Tim Smith.

Who are the career leading rushers for all 32 NFL franchises?

Who are the career leading rushers for all 32 NFL franchises?

 

Who are the career leading rushers for all 32 NFL teams?

Jim Brown, Emmitt Smith and many surprises are the career-leading rushers for each of the 32 NFL teams.

Who are the leading career rushing yardage gainers for each of the 32 NFL teams?

Arizona Cardinals: Ottis Anderson

Herb Weitman-USA TODAY Sports

Ottis Anderson went on to win a Super Bowl in his time with the Giants but he was rock solid with the Cardinals, though they were not in Arizona. He played eight seasons with the birds and rushed for 7,999 yards. Would have been nice if he could have gotten another yard to have averaged 1,000 year season as a Cardinal.

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A John Riggins Super Bowl record almost fell Sunday night

John Riggins had a Super Bowl record threatened Sunday night.

Washington Redskins legend John Riggins nearly had a Super Bowl record fall during Sunday’s memorable encounter between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers.

Later in the game, Chiefs running back Damien Williams busted out a 38-yard touchdown scamper to secure the win for Kansas City and the MVP-winning Patrick Mahomes.

As Sportsnet noted in the tweet above, that was just shy of Riggins’ epic performance in Super Bowl XVII.

That Super Bowl XVII, of course, is where the Redskins won on the back of a Super Bowl-MVP performance from Riggins, who not only set a game record with the 43-yard rush, but also set records for most attempts (38) and most yards (166).

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