The strength of three: The 30 greatest trios in NFL history

“I’m bored, I’m broke and I’m back.”

Those were the words Pro Football Hall of Fame running back John Riggins uttered at practice after his year-long holdout from Washington Redskins football. This was 1981, one year after the Redskins had drafted Art Monk in the first round of the 1980 NFL Draft. And it was this return that brought together one of the most illustrious trios in NFL history.

This trio would only combine for one of Joe Gibbs’ three Super Bowl titles in the 1980s, but this group was by far the most established of the bunch. Joe Theismann, the 1983 NFL MVP who won with a steady vision and a laser arm.

Riggins paced the league as a rusher for years and averaged 152.5 yards per playoff game in 1982 while leading the Redskins to a Super Bowl championship.

Then, there was Monk, the Pro Football Hall of Fame pass-catcher who was the NFL’s all-time leading receiver for a spell, so consistent that Jerry Rice had to be the one to break his mark.

The exploits of this trio, together in one unit, were not as plentiful as others, but the sheer prestige of each player, in the company of the others, deserves recognition. Gibbs’ Super Bowls are marked by their stark differences, but this trio was as consistent as they came.