Joe Theismann
Joseph Robert Theismann is an American former professional football player, sports commentator, corporate speaker, and restaurateur. He rose to fame playing quarterback in the National Football League and Canadian Football League. Theismann spent 12 seasons with the Washington Redskins, where he was a two-time Pro Bowler and led the team to consecutive Super Bowl appearances, winning Super Bowl XVII over the Miami Dolphins and losing Super Bowl XVIII to the Los Angeles Raiders. He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003.
During the Redskins' 11th game of the 1985 NFL season, Theismann suffered a career-ending leg injury, forcing him to retire. Theismann worked as a sportscaster and an analyst on pro football broadcasts with ESPN for nearly 20 years. He primarily partnered with Mike Patrick, for the network's Sunday Night Football package and for one season of Monday Night Football with Mike Tirico and Tony Kornheiser. Theismann also worked as a color analyst on NFL Network's Thursday Night Football package with play-by-play voice Bob Papa and Matt Millen. Theismann also co-hosts the network's weekly show Playbook. Since 2011, he has worked on the Washington Commanders preseason television broadcast team. Theismann also works on the NFL Network on a variety of programs, primarily as an analyst.
Early life
Theismann was born to Austrian Joseph John Theismann who "ran a gas station and worked in his brother's liquor store." His Hungarian mother, Olga Tóbiás, worked for Johnson & Johnson until her retirement. Theismann was raised in South River, New Jersey, and attended South River High School, where he lettered in baseball, basketball, and football.He was a high school teammate of Drew Pearson. Theismann accepted a college football scholarship to attend the University of Notre Dame, where he lived in Zahm Hall.
College career
At Notre Dame, Theismann became the starting quarterback in his sophomore year after Terry Hanratty was injured late in the season.In the three remaining games in the regular season, he led the Irish to two wins and a tie. In 1969, Theismann led the Irish to a number five ranking, but lost to the University of Texas in the 1970 Cotton Bowl Classic, 21–17. The next year, the Irish had a 10–1 record, a number two ranking, and won against Texas in the 1971 Cotton Bowl Classic, 24–11.
That year, Theismann was an All-American and an Academic All-American and was in contention for the Heisman Trophy, but he finished second to Jim Plunkett of Stanford University. Theismann, whose last name was actually pronounced THEES-mann, later recalled that Notre Dame Sports Information Director Roger Valdiserri insisted that he change the pronunciation of his name to rhyme with "Heisman", although in the process, Theismann learned from his grandmother that the original pronunciation of his last name was TICE-mann.
Theismann set school records for passing yards in a season and touchdowns in a season. He also set a school record for passing yards in a game and completions in a game while playing against the University of Southern California in a torrential downpour in 1970, which the Irish lost 38–28. As a starting quarterback, Theismann compiled a 20–3–2 record while throwing for 4,411 yards and 31 touchdowns. His 4,411 passing yards rank fifth on Notre Dame's career passing list.
Theismann was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003. He was the eighth Notre Dame quarterback enshrined into the hall, joining former Heisman Trophy winners Angelo Bertelli, John Lujack, and Paul Hornung.
Professional career
Toronto Argonauts
Theismann was selected 99th overall in the fourth round of the 1971 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins and in the 39th round of the 1971 Major League Baseball draft by the Minnesota Twins. After prolonged negotiations with the Dolphins failed, Theismann elected to sign with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League for $50,000 per season.In his rookie year, Theismann quarterbacked the Argonauts to a 10–4 record, led the league's Eastern Conference in passing statistics, and won a berth in the Grey Cup game against the Calgary Stampeders in Vancouver, British Columbia. A fumble late in the fourth quarter by Argonaut running back Leon McQuay close to the goal line cost the Argonauts what would have been their first Grey Cup victory since 1952.
In 1971, Theismann completed 148 of 278 passes for 2,440 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions. His 1972 season was shortened by injury, but he completed 77 of 127 passes for 1,157 yards and ten touchdowns. During his last CFL season in 1973, he completed 157 of 274 passes for 2,496 yards and 13 touchdowns and the same number of interceptions. Theismann was an all-star in both 1971 and 1973.
Washington Redskins
In 1974, the Washington Redskins obtained Theismann's rights from the Dolphins in exchange for the team's first-round draft pick in 1976. Theismann left the CFL and joined the Redskins, where he served as the team's punt returner during his first season. In 1978, Theismann became the Redskins' starting quarterback, succeeding Billy Kilmer.In 1982, Theismann led the Redskins to their first championship in 40 years against the Dolphins in Super Bowl XVII. He threw two touchdowns and with the Redskins trailing 17–13 in the third quarter made arguably the most important defensive play of the game. After his pass was deflected by Dolphins lineman Kim Bokamper, causing what appeared to be an interception and sure touchdown that would have given Miami a two-score lead and effectively taken MVP running back John Riggins out of the game, Theismann himself was able to knock the ball out of Bokamper's hands to have it result in an incompletion rather than a catch. Later on, Washington ran their way to victory. He also led the team to an appearance in Super Bowl XVIII the following year and would go on to set several Redskins franchise records, including most career passing attempts, most career passing completions and most career passing yards, while also throwing 160 touchdown passes, with 138 interceptions. On the ground, he rushed for 1,815 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was named NFL MVP in 1983 by four organizations. He earned the Player of the Game Award in the second of his two Pro Bowl appearances. Theismann also punted once in his career, for one yard against the Chicago Bears.
In an era when most quarterbacks had long since used variations of a double-bar facemask or "cage" facemasks that afforded more protection, Theismann stood out in his use of a signature one-bar face mask throughout his pro career.
However, on at least one occasion, Theismann wore a helmet with a more standard facemask. Substituting for an ineffective Billy Kilmer against the Dallas Cowboys on October 16, 1977, Theismann entered the game wearing a facemask similar to the style worn by Ken Stabler at the time.
Career-ending injury
On November 18, 1985, Theismann suffered a comminuted compound fracture of the tibia and fibula in his right leg when he was sacked by linebackers Lawrence Taylor and Harry Carson. The injury took place during a Monday Night Football game against the New York Giants telecast by ABC from RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.The injury was later voted the NFL's "Most Shocking Moment in History" by viewers in an ESPN poll, and the tackle was ultimately dubbed "The Hit That No One Who Saw It Can Ever Forget" by The Washington Post.
The game's score was 7–7 in the second quarter when the Redskins attempted to run a "flea-flicker" play; Theismann handed the ball off to fullback John Riggins, who subsequently lateralled the ball back to the quarterback. The Giants' defense, however, was tightly focused, and they tried to blitz Theismann. As Taylor pulled Theismann down, Taylor's knee came down and drove straight into Theismann's lower right leg, fracturing both the tibia and the fibula as Giants linebackers Gary Reasons and Harry Carson also joined Taylor in the sack. Theismann would later describe the incident :
The pain was unbelievable, but it didn't last more than a second or two. My leg snapped like a breadstick. I heard it clearly, it sounded like two muzzled gunshots over my left shoulder. Pow, pow!... It was at that point, I also found out what a magnificent machine the human body is. Almost immediately, from the knee down, all the feeling was gone in my right leg. The endorphins had kicked in, and I was not in any great pain.
As Theismann was down, Taylor immediately popped to his feet and began frantically waving, before looking back and seeing Theismann sprawled on the ground. Initially, many Redskins personnel thought Taylor was taunting after the play before quickly realizing that Theismann was seriously injured, but it was later confirmed that Taylor knew immediately that something had happened and was trying to signal for help from the emergency medical technicians, something the Monday Night Football announcer team of Frank Gifford, O. J. Simpson, and Joe Namath had correctly inferred from the start.
While initially only the players on the field could see the extent of the damage to Theismann's leg, the reverse-angle instant replay provided a clearer view of what had actually happened: Theismann's lower leg bones were broken midway between his knee and his ankle, such that his leg from his foot to his mid-shin was lying flat against the ground while the upper part of his shin up to his knee was at a 45-degree angle to the lower part of his leg. ABC's decision to screen the reverse-angle instant replay several times despite its palpably graphic content shocked millions of viewers, with some describing it as "the most horrific professional sports injury of all time"; the repeated screening of this replay remains one of the most controversial in-game television production decisions in NFL history. As the replays were shown, Gifford repeatedly urged viewers at home to exercise discretion: "If your stomach is weak, just don't watch."
The compound fracture of the tibia and fibula led to insufficient bone growth during Theismann's recovery, leaving his right leg shorter than his left. As a result, the injury ended Theismann's career, forcing him to retire at the age of 36. While Theismann has clarified that Taylor apologized to him many times for the incident, he also stated that he never blamed Taylor, reiterating that he was merely doing his job.
Theismann's injury was highlighted in the film The Blind Side as the reason that, after the quarterback, one of the highest paid football players is the left tackle, who protects a right-handed quarterback's blind side. A very similar injury occurred exactly 33 years later to another Redskins quarterback, Alex Smith, on November 18, 2018, in a game against the Houston Texans when cornerback Kareem Jackson and defensive end J. J. Watt sacked Smith, a game that Theismann himself was attending. However, unlike Theismann, Smith managed to play an additional season two years later in 2020 and won the Comeback Player of the Year award before retiring in 2021.