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To me, the most impressive thing about his career is he had his most productive years regarding yards gained towards the tail end of his career.
1983-1347 yards
1984-1239 yards
Dude was tough!
Absolutely!
It had to be because the Hogs were so great in blocking technique. That would've sprung "The Rig" out into the open green more than once! I don't believe he had the benefit of such an excellent offensive line while at the NY Jets.
I know this is a very unpopular opinion but I'm pretty convinced there were several backs in the league at the time who could have done what Riggo did behind that line. Don't get me wrong, he was a great back and will always be one of my favorites. But he benefited greatly from his situation, had he stayed with the Jets I'm not sure he is a Hall of Famer.
Last edited by DaveinMtAiry; 08-07-2018 at 05:53 AM..
I know this is a very unpopular opinion but I'm pretty convinced there were several backs in the league at the time who could have done what Riggo did behind that line. Don't get me wrong, he was a great back and will always be one of my favorites. But he benefited greatly from his situation, had he stayed with the Jets I'm not sure he is a Hall of Famer.
Yeah, it definitely helped having the hogs. But, I've always felt that if you don't have a solid offensive line, you're not going to have a running game, no matter who's in the backfield. The only exception to that rule, during my lifetime, would be Barry Sanders.
Good notes above w/ Dave and Skinsguy37. In the era that Riggins played, he is a ways behing the best running backs of the mid 1970's to the mid 1980's, starting with Walter Payton, Earl Campbell, Tony Dorsett, and Franco Harris.
I'll give Riggins a plus for a couple reasons.
His career with the Jets? He was employed by a skinflint for an owner, Phil Iselin. At that point John was glad to get out of there as the Jets was in the middle of 3 3-11 seasons. The last winning season they had was in 1969. The Jets still had Winston Hill and Randy Rasmussen from their SB-III year but the rest of their offensive line was, well, not good. The decade for the NY Jets was, well, a lot of Jets hardcore fans would like to forget those years.
It was a tad ballsy for Riggins to hold out for the 1980 season but he proved himself as he was the MVP in the Dolphins/Redskins super bowl game.
There are times where too much emphasis is made on total pro bowl appearances and all pros regarding the HOF selection process. With Riggins, he was named to just one pro bowl one year and one all-pro year.
But one stat jumps out at me. Come playoff time, he came to play. He rushed for 100 plus yards in six straight playoff games, a pro football record that stood for a long time until Bronco Terrell Davis broke it in 1998.
I know this is a very unpopular opinion but I'm pretty convinced there were several backs in the league at the time who could have done what Riggo did behind that line.. he benefited greatly from his situation..
Dave, I think your assessment is fair.. but I think it should go without saying.. Football is a team game. Every guy who has ever played benefitted and/or suffered because of the players around him.
I notice a lot of Patriot haters use this argument to try & diminish the individual greatness of Brady & Belichick.. Brady wouldn't be as a great without the great coach, (vice versa).. where would Belichick be without Brady ?
But that's the nature of team sport.. is every great player suspect, if he was uplifted by other greats (?)
Dang I thought i was going to get more push back for my Riggo opinion, he's revered in DC. I also always thought it was interesting how quickly he was forgiven by the fans for sitting out a season and really screwing the team who was forced to trade a high pick at the last minute to find a RB.
I honestly have no idea why our team is picked to be so bad. They seem to have improved on their weaknesses, well most of them anyway and I happen to think the defense can be pretty good. But they lack that one guy, the OBJ, Zeke, type of player that can really carry a team. And Washington is still Washington.
Dang I thought i was going to get more push back for my Riggo opinion, he's revered in DC. I also always thought it was interesting how quickly he was forgiven by the fans for sitting out a season and really screwing the team who was forced to trade a high pick at the last minute to find a RB.
A couple Super Bowl appearances and a Lombardi trophy a couple years later pretty much helps to erase any of that. Especially with the performance that Riggo had in the playoffs. You figure, it turned out to be a good move for the franchise. The team never had an issue running the rock even after Riggo retired. Sure, maybe the team would have drafted a future hall of famer with that high round pick - or maybe the player would have turned out to be a bust. As far as I'm concerned, the best thing to happen for the team happened during that time, and I wouldn't change any of that history now.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DaveinMtAiry
I honestly have no idea why our team is picked to be so bad. They seem to have improved on their weaknesses, well most of them anyway and I happen to think the defense can be pretty good. But they lack that one guy, the OBJ, Zeke, type of player that can really carry a team. And Washington is still Washington.
It starts with Daniel Snyder. The media hates him as an NFL owner. To be honest, I'm not sure how well received he is with the other owners in the league, other than Jerry Jones. Interestingly, they both seem to be very good friends and often see things eye to eye. With Snyder's media war he's had going on throughout the years, the war he's had with a local newspaper, the Washington Post, and then the whole Redskins name controversy, anything or anyone who doesn't seem to be "progressive" enough is often looked down upon. So, the sports media, in general, has a disdain for the Redskins. Remember the whole Phil Simms thing where he said he'd no longer use the name, Redskins when he called their games? Of course, after he said that and then called on the games, I remember him using the name several times in the broadcast anyway. But, in general, I happen to believe that the franchise is not looked upon in a very positive light, so it's customary for the media to assume the 'skins are a bad franchise, bad team.
I'm hoping Guice is going to be that "Zeke" type of player that can carry the team. He has really impressed folks in training camp and OTAs. I can't wait to see him in action. If he is everything as advertised, and Thompson remains healthy, that could be a pretty deadly combination coming out of the backfield. Could really help cover up any issues that we may have at wide receiver.
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