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I have been putting this post off for a couple weeks, but only because I wasn't prepared to do one for 64 people this year. We do this most years around March Madness, and I wanted to try something a little different. Instead of throwing out players or coaches or games, I thought I would come up with a handful of very specific memories and face them off against each other.
I considered soliciting memories from the readers on this, but I felt a little weird about having individual treasured moments battle it out (maybe another day). It is damn near impossible to come up with a definitive list on this, so please go into this knowing that great moments are missing from this.
Here's how it will work:
I'll introduce a handful of memories, and put up a poll. The top THREE will advance to our Hogs Haven Redskins Treasured Moments Bracket. For the purpose of this particular post, I am going to rule out Super Bowl games/performances as well as anything the hiring of Scot McCloughan. (The age ranges on this site are incredibly varied, so forgive me for not hitting one from each era. I think that makes for an even better post down the road.)
The fourth one will come from the comments section, by means of either rec votes or executive decision. When we get the Final Four, we will have two matchups and then a final. Here goes...
1) Darryl Grant's ten-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1983 NFC Championship game.
2) John Riggins' Hall of Fame induction speech -- I wish I had the link for this. It is just amazing. I am pretty sure he mixes up his speech cards and stumbles through the delivery, but in doing so, he cements his status as the king--he literally can do NO wrong in Redskins Nation! (I have searched for relevant video of this, but I am having difficulty finding a suitable link. If anyone has something on this, please include it in the comments section.)
3) Sean Taylor's return of the blocked field goal against the Dallas Cowboys that led to Nick Novak's winning kick with no time left on the clock.
4) Robert Griffin III taking it to the house against the Minnesota Vikings -- ELECTRIC!!
5) Art Monk's induction into the Hall of Fame -- He shared this day with Darrell Green, but this moment belonged to Art. I was in the crowd on this day in Canton, and I will never forget that ovation. As far as moments/memories go, this one was special not just because of who it was and what it meant...it was an amazing gathering of Redskins fans to celebrate something positive--in the middle of a time in our history that has been lacking in positives.
I actually came up with TEN of these and had to whittle down to five. God that was hard. I look forward to seeing your suggestions below. Currently, Vegas lists the people's choice as the favorite to win it all, but the above moments have solid odds as well.