21. Joe Theismann and Art Monk
Joe Theismann didn’t have much time to work with Art Monk, but when they did get a chance to play together, magic happened.
Theismann was, of course, a very talented quarterback who won the Heisman Trophy while at Notre Dame. Monk was a highly touted first-round pick from Syracuse.
The reason the two barely had a chance to play together was No. 56 for the New York Giants, Lawrence Taylor. On an infamous Monday Night Football game in 1985, Taylor blitzed Theismann broke his leg in horrific fashion on live TV. It’s one of the most nightmarish images in sports history.
But for five wonderful seasons, Theismann and Monk found some real chemistry. They connected for 23 touchdowns during that span, and they could have found even more success together had it not been for Taylor’s hit.
Theismann and Monk led the Washington Redskins to back-to-back NFC Championship wins in 1982 and 1983. In ’82, they took down the Miami Dolphins in the Super Bowl, but they fell short to the Los Angeles Raiders a year later in the big game. But still, winning one Super Bowl is hard enough, and they made it to two straight Super Bowls.
Two years after Theismann’s career-ending injury, Timmy Smith led the Redskins to another Super Bowl title against the Denver Broncos in 1987.
Theismann has yet to get inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame, but Monk was inducted in 2008. Theismann finished his career with 160 passing touchdowns while Monk ended with 68 receiving touchdowns. They both should have had more.