Washington Redskins By the Numbers: #7

by Ken Meringolo on May 20, 2009 10:15 AM EDT in Redskins By The (Jersey) Numbers

There was a commenter last week who begged me not go with you-know-who in this slot, which really threw me off. So I asked for suggestions for other possibilities and the silence was deafening. I never even considered that on this post, we would not be talking about none other than:

Joe Theismann

The exercise to find alternatives is seemingly futile, as I can find zero evidence of any other former Redskin who wore this number (is that possible?) We know that no player has worn #7 since, as Theismann's jersey is among those "unofficially" retired by the team. More importantly, why would you even careto go with anyone else? As the NFL MVP in 1983, he led what was at the time, the most potent offense the NFL had ever seen, scoring 541 points. Theismann, Riggins, Monk, Brown, Garrett...come on. They were unstoppable--until they were stopped by the Raiders in the Super Bowl...D'OH! How about these for quarterback stats out of D.C.?

60.1% completion percentage

3714 yards

29 TD's

11 INT's

Not too shabby for a smallish white dude wearing a single-bar facemask with a mom named Olga. I was able to find a jpeg of the poster in Kevin's bedroom:

Theismann was beaten by Jim Plunkett twice actually--the aforementioned Super Bowl and the 1970 Heisman race. Still, being a stud QB out of Notre Dame, he was drafted into the NFL by the Dolphins AND into the MLB by the Minnesota Twins. But he failed to come to a contract agreement with the Dolphins (did the Lerners own the Dolphins back then**) and went up to Toronto to play in the CFL, where he was a two-time All-Star. The Redskins obtained the rights to Theismann in 1974 and he made the jump to the NFL. The only problem was the roster already had Billy Kilmer and Sonny Jurgensen on it. So he volunteered to return punts. You just have to love that. And you know what, he seemed to always exhibit the heart and feistiness of a punt returner for his entire career.

(**I know, I know...Joe Robbie owned the Dolphins and it was a disagreement between the two Joe's that led to Theismann going to Canada.)

Even more famous than the fight he displayed on the field, however, was the way in which he was forever removed from the field. That's right...Monday night, November 18, 1985. I was 9 years old. Oh yeah...we're showing it.

At the end of that video, Joe Theismann speaks of a new man that was born that night. He was right. This guy was born that night:

via i.a.cnn.net

He might not be your favorite talking head of all-time. He might even be the guy you least enjoyed on TV. But he was a Redskin, and sometimes that was enough to overlook things like him saying, "A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein."

And he was one of the ORIGINAL hosts of American Gladiators!

via www.agdomain.rockfacemedia.com

Joe Theismann

There's no shortage of Joe Theismann stories and memories. What are your favorite memories of #7?

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Comments

Clearly the right pick. I’ve grown to re-like Joe T over the years. He’s one of the more intelligent commentators on tv today, and there’s a shortage of those.

by smutsboy1 on May 20, 2009 11:04 AM EDT reply actions

Sugar

The comment about you finding the jpeg of the poster in Kevin’s room was priceless. I spit coffee all over my computer. LMAO

by RedskinCali63 on May 20, 2009 11:22 AM EDT reply actions

Joe T pic

I found a necklace just like that and where it everywhere now…still working on the chest hair. UK is extremely wet but the beers are top notch…which i’ll take over weather anyday. off to the links!

by Kevin Ewoldt on May 21, 2009 7:35 AM EDT up reply actions

scout out some hot spots for when we have to go to the Super Bowl there

pretty sure next time we go it’ll be in Dallas or London, haha

MIAMI!

From Richmond to the District

by Parks Smith on May 21, 2009 9:28 AM EDT up reply actions

Will do

I’m going to the Sunderland/Chelsea match on Sunday here…I’m sure if I mention america football tho I’ll get a beer bottle over the head.

by Kevin Ewoldt on May 21, 2009 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions

Didn't he also have like a 1 yd punt?

I seem to remember Gibbs putting him back to punt once (against the Iggles perhaps?) and he netted a yard or something like that. Super shank.

by Ken Meringolo on May 20, 2009 12:21 PM EDT reply actions

Week 4, 1985 Season, against the Bears in Chicago

You are correct about the punt, to some extent… but it was against the Bears (in their monster year, 1985), at Soldier Field in Chicago.

We lost our punter early in the game due to an injury (the Bears rushed the kicker, hit him when he was still fully extended, and sprained his leg, IIRC). Mosley was available, but wasn’t a punter; Joey T. had punted in High School, and some in college, so Joe went with him to keep a rhythm going. Joey shanked the ball on the one kick he got off, and it NETTED 1 yard… but there was also a fierce, swirling wind that day, along with our Special Teams Line was breaking down under the fired up Chicago rush… so he was under pretty extreme pressure. I will say it was somewhat of a … limp …. effort though.

Coach Gibbs substituted another kicker (can’t remember who; seems to me he was one of the Wideouts, though) for Joey in the game as Joey nearly got creamed there too… and we did better, but even then, our special teams gave up such good field position for the rest of the game the result was pretty much a foregone conclusion (we didn’t average over 18-20 yards per punt DISCOUNTING Joey’s shank). Final score, 45-10, Bears… Bears went on to lose only a single game (against the Dolphins, naturally) on their way to their one and only Superbowl Trophy. We fell to 1-3, after our superlative season two years before, and our first SB victory three seasons before), though we finished at 10-6, but out of the playoffs; the Cowboys and Giants also went 10-6, but the Cowboys swept us, and the Giants had a better NFC East record (we were 4-4).

by BillWard on May 20, 2009 7:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Welcome to Hogs Haven Bill

Great contribution right there. 10-6….would have killed for that last year!

by Ken Meringolo on May 20, 2009 8:54 PM EDT up reply actions

“A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein.”

Classic.

"The character of a person is in direct proportion to his commitment to excellence." -Vince Lombardi.

by VA_Skin on May 20, 2009 12:54 PM EDT reply actions

Stats comparison

JT 1983 MVP

- 60.1% accuracy
- 3714 yards
- 29 TD’s
- 11 INT’s

JC 2008

- 62.3 % accuracy
- 3245 yards
- 13 TD’s*
- 6 INT’s

*JC needs to improve in the red zone.

"The character of a person is in direct proportion to his commitment to excellence." -Vince Lombardi.

by VA_Skin on May 20, 2009 1:15 PM EDT reply actions

Ouch

13 TD’s just looks sad doesn’t it?

Riggins pounded in 24 TD’s that year I think too. Portis ran well when he was healthy, but he fell…..ummmmm…..a bit short of 24 TD’s.

by Ken Meringolo on May 20, 2009 1:56 PM EDT reply actions

yeah, you think any of those small guys will make the team this season to back up portis?
I’m still pissed we took barnes in the third round, we have bigger depth issues in other areas and we could of got a good RB there, and cody glenn? what the hell? can someone explain to me why we picked his ass up

sorry, still confused

by travisjh86 on May 20, 2009 2:08 PM EDT up reply actions

not saying we should have used our 3rd round on a RB, but if we were going to waste it (yeah i said it) on an average corner who was hurt pretty much all last season…

by travisjh86 on May 20, 2009 2:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Barnes was a head scratcher.

I would have loved to have seen them take an OL (center, guard, tackle, anyone) in the 3rd round. I can rationalize not taking a RB in the 3rd round because teams prove time and time again that you can get RB’s late on draft day or even off the street. I think one of those guys off the street we signed in the offseason could make the team, just like Mason should have made the team last year. But there were some great RB prospects when we drafted Barnes….and Glenn.
As for Barnes…I will say this: He seems like a physical player and in this division you simply have to have physical corners. If he gets a chance to develop, he could make an impact.

by Ken Meringolo on May 20, 2009 3:43 PM EDT reply actions

Best Theismann memory

MNF. Washington 9, Dallas 5. Joe ending the game by running out of the back of the endzone for a safety with the ball held over his head in triumph.

by mochajava on May 20, 2009 4:10 PM EDT reply actions

Joey T Memory

My favorite memory is the game against the Giants at RFK that sent the Skins to the playoffs. The one where Mosley kicks the record FG. In that game Joe T gets part of his tooth knocked out. Then he throws a huge block on a reverse for Joe Washington. That epitimizies Redskins football in my book: tough and unselfish.

by smith1468 on May 20, 2009 10:48 PM EDT reply actions

Tough and unselfish

I wish I could completely agree with you on this fact smith, however lately it seems that our boys are not fully committing themselves to the game as they have done in the past. If they did make that commitment then you would agree that defenses would not penetrate the line as much as they do. Our guys need to really step up in that department. It seems that our QB’s have been overworked for far too long because of the offensive line for not protecting the pocket effectively enough. Thank god JC knows how to scramble, now if he could just learn to be accurate while passing on the run….

by HardcoreHOGfan on May 21, 2009 4:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Check Out the Joe Pic!

Wow that was a long time ago. You think THE IS MAN likes to let you know he’s in shape. Noticed the scare on the shoulder. Looks like he had shoulder surgery just like I did.
Sucks.

by fantasy-info on May 21, 2009 1:12 AM EDT reply actions

Memories of Theismann

Admittingly I do not recall any specific plays where JT was exceptional, however I can’t remember what I had for dinner last night either..lol…I do recall on many occassions where JT handed off the ball to Riggins for him to plow up the middle on many plays throughout this superb RB/QB matchup. Or dumping the rock to one of the greatest Wide Receivers of his time, none other than Art Monk. It was truly a sad and devastating day for the Skins when LT took him out for good.

by HardcoreHOGfan on May 21, 2009 4:37 AM EDT reply actions