Next Wednesday on NFLN. This could be very interesting to watch. http://nflfilms.nfl.com/2012/11/15/john-riggins-a-football-life-first-look/
and the week after it's Mike Tannenbaum:A Football Life "Problems with the Calculator" a two part special about Calvin Pace and Bart Scotts contracts
He was the first 1,000 yard rusher in Jets history. It's sad that many people don't remember him as a Jet, because had he stayed he would have been an all-time great Jets player.
Was it me or does it seem like he takes a slight shot at Namath during the promo's? Maybe I'm reading into it too much. I guess we'll see next week. I wasn't alive to see either play so I'm interested.
I remember watching a show on him on NFL Network a year or two ago. He said that Namath and himself didn't get along too well. Basically for the reason that Joe liked to throw the ball, more then hand it off.
Riggins was something with the Jets. As pointed out, our first 1000 yarder, and they let him walk away, of course. He was a wild man off the field. His roommate was defensive back Chris Pharasopoulus, and they both wore huge afros, and were constantly getting in trouble off the the field. His leaving was the beginning of the decline into the awful years of the mid to late 70s
wiki... New York Jets (1971–1975) Riggins was drafted in the first round of the 1971 NFL Draft by the New York Jets and as a rookie he became the first Jet to lead the team in both rushing and receiving.[9] On October 15, 1972, the Jets set a team-record of 333 rushing yards against the New England Patriots, beating them 41-13.[10] Riggins, who had 168 yards, and Emerson Boozer, who had 150 yards, became the only running back tandem in franchise history who both rushed for 150 yards in a game.[10] Although he missed the final two games in 1972 because of knee surgery, Riggins rushed for 944 yards, four yards less than Matt Snell's franchise record.[9] Riggins was among the top ten rushers in the American Football Conference in 1974 despite missing four games with a shoulder injury.[9] After only four years with the Jets, he was already the fourth leading rusher in team history with 2,875 yards.[9] In 1975, Riggins became the first player in franchise history to rush for 1,000 or more yards in a season.[11] On December 21, 1975, he ran for 121 yards against the Dallas Cowboys which gave him 1,005 for the season.[11] In what turned out to be his last season with the Jets, Riggins made his only appearance in the Pro Bowl.[5] Riggins was named the Jets' MVP (now known as the Martin Award) in 1972 and 1975.[12] Washington Redskins (1976–1979) In 1976, Riggins signed as a free agent with the Washington Redskins,[5] who offered him a four-year, $1.5 million contract, compared to the $75,000 he earned in his final year with the Jets.[13] He was used mostly in short-yardage situations in his first season with Washington and missed much of the 1977 season with a knee injury.[13] However, he gained more than 1,000 yards each of the next two seasons and was a major part of the Redskins' offense.[13] Contract dispute (1980) During training camp in July 1980, Riggins requested to renegotiate his $300,000-a-year contract and the Redskins refused.[14] He then chose to leave camp and the Redskins placed him on the left camp-retired list, a move that made him ineligible to play for any other team in the league.[14] He sat out the 1980 season[5] and didn't rejoin the Redskins until 1981, when new Washington head coach Joe Gibbs traveled to Kansas to make a peace offering.[15] "He had a camouflage outfit on", Gibbs recalled. “ He had been hunting, him and a buddy. He had a beer can in his hand. It was 10 o'clock in the morning and he's meeting his coach for the first time and I'm thinking [sarcastically], 'This guy really impresses me.' But I went in there, and halfway through the conversation he says, 'You need to get me back there. I'll make you famous.[15] I thought to myself, 'Oh, my God, he's an egomaniac.' I thought, 'I'll get him back and then I'll trade him. I'm not putting up with a fruitcake.' So I fly back to Washington, and two days later he calls me. He says, 'Joe, I made up my mind, and I'm going to play next season.' I thought it was great. I've got him back, and I'll trade that sucker. But then he says, 'There's only one thing I want in my contract.' I ask what it was. He says, 'A no-trade clause.'[15] ” Riggins's return also came at the suggestion of Ed Garvey, who was the executive director of the NFL Players Association.[14] Eleven months after he left, Riggins returned to training camp in 1981 with a new contract,[13] telling the media "I'm bored, I'm broke, and I'm back."[14] Washington Redskins (1981–1985) Riggins at the Redskins' 1983 Training Camp. Upon Riggins' return in 1981, he managed just 714 rushing yards but scored 13 touchdowns.[13] During the strike-shortened 1982 season, Riggins gained 553 yards.[13] He was much more successful during the playoffs, during which he gained 444 yards in victories over the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings (where he had a franchise playoff record 185 yards), and Dallas Cowboys, and helped the Redskins reach Super Bowl XVII.[13] Riggins rushed for a then-Super Bowl record 166 yards on 38 carries as the Redskins beat the Miami Dolphins 27–17.[5] He was then named Super Bowl MVP.[5] A play that was designed for gaining short yardage called "70 chip" turned out to be the key play of the game. With 10 minutes remaining, Riggins took a handoff on 4th-and-inches, broke an attempted tackle by Dolphin cornerback Don McNeal and ran for a 43 yard touchdown.[16] The Super Bowl win was the Redskins' first championship victory since 1942.[17] Riggins' total of 610 yards amounted to 43 percent of Washington's offense in the four playoff games.[13] His four consecutive playoff games with over 100 yards was an NFL postseason record.[17] On December 6, 2007, Riggins' run was voted by fans as the Redskins' Greatest Moment.[18] The 610 rushing yards and 625 yards from scrimmage he gained in the 1982 playoffs are both single NFL postseason records. In 1983, Riggins rushed for 1,347 yards, scored a then-NFL record 24 touchdowns, won the Bert Bell Award,[13] and was named All-Pro for the first time in his career.[5] Riggins went on to have another outstanding postseason, rushing for 242 yards and two touchdowns in their two playoff games, extending his NFL record of postseason games with at least 100 rushing yards to six.[5] He then rushed for 64 yards and a touchdown in the Redskins' 38-9 Super Bowl XVIII loss against the Los Angeles Raiders.[19] Two other career milestones happened in 1983 for Riggins. On November 20, 1983, he set an NFL record by scoring in his 12th consecutive game during a 42–20 win over the Los Angeles Rams. His record would end at 13 consecutive games the following week.[20] Then on December 17, 1983, Mark Moseley set an NFL kicking record by scoring 161 points in a season, which also made him the league leader in scoring that season. Riggins, who scored 144 points, was second on the season scoring list. This was the first time since 1951 that the top two scorers in a season played on the same team.[20] Riggins gained 1,239 yards in 1984 and tied for the league lead in rushing TDs (14), despite a bad back.[13] In 1985, he rushed for more than 100 yards in three of his last four starts before being replaced by George Rogers as the starter.[13] He retired after that season. Riggins played 175 games in 14 seasons, had 13,442 total yards (11,352 rushing and 2,090 receiving) and 116 total touchdowns (104 rushing and 12 receiving).[5] Riggins rushed over 1,000 yards five times in his career and over 100 yards in 35 games, including a then-record six in post-season. He rushed 251 times for 996 yards and 12 touchdowns in nine post-season contests.[5] He was the second player ever to rush for over 100 touchdowns in NFL history, and the first to do it since Jim Brown reached the milestone in 1965.[21]
He was my favorite Jet back in the early 70's. I have always loved bull dozer power rushers like Riggins. Broke my heart when he went to the Redskins. Guy DID have a screw or two loose though.
I still have two football cards of him somewhere, one with the fro and the other with a mohawk. Had Riggins stayed with the Jets though they still would have sucked through the mid to late 70's. By 1974 that team was in shambles.
Riggins was Fantastic. He was also straight up crazy. Great guy. Great player. He wanted to play for a running team which is why he left the NYJ.
