The Washington Redskins recognized the birthday of legendary wide receiver Art Monk. The 2008 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee recently turned 60 years old and the milestone provided the perfect opportunity for the Redskins faithful to pay tribute to his outstanding career.
The Redskins selected the former Syracuse star in the first round of the 1980 NFL draft and he was a unanimous choice for the NFL All-Rookie team that season. The White Plains, New York native played 14 seasons with the Redskins and earned several accolades that would be the foundation of his Hall of Fame career. In 1984 Monk caught 106 receptions for the Burgundy and Gold that season which was the NFL record at that time.
In addition to being a member of all three of the Redskins Super Bowl Championship teams, Monk was a member of the team’s famed wide receiver corp “The Posse”. Along with fellow pass catchers, Gary Clark and Ricky Sanders, Monk and company were a part of one of the most prolific receiving tandems in NFL history. In 1989 Monk, Clark and Sanders became the first trio of NFL wide receivers to catch over 1,000 yards each.
The 6′-3″ pass catcher was a part of the NFL 1980’s All-Decade team and he’s also recognized on both the 70th and 80th Greatest Redskins teams of all time. Monk’s personality was the antithesis of the “diva” persona that is attached to a number of the NFL’s elite past and present wide receivers. He quietly was one of the Redskins most reliable and formidable offensive weapons during the first Joe Gibbs era and he was always a scoring threat from anywhere on the field.
Monk was selected to three consecutive Pro Bowls between 1984 to 1986 and he was NFL First Team All-Pro in 1984. On October 12, 1982, Monk set the NFL record for receptions in a Monday Night Football matchup against the Denver Broncos. The three-time Super Bowl Champion also was the first player in NFL history to catch over 900 catches and held the All-Time receptions record until 1995 when another Hall of Fame Receiver, Jerry Rice, would ultimately surpass him.
In his final years in the league, Monk would play for the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles, however, his Hall of Fame career was set with his time in the Nation’s Capital. Monk would end his NFL tenure catching 940 passes for 12,721 yards, 68 touchdowns and one of only 19 players in NFL history to catch over 940 passes in their career.
