View source for Gerald Riggs

{{Short description|American football player (born 1960)}}
{{For|the running back of the same name who is his son (born 1983)|Gerald Riggs Jr.}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Gerald Riggs
| image       = Gerald Riggs 2013.jpg
| caption     = Riggs in 2013
| number      = 42, 37
| position    = [[Running back]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1960|11|6}}
| birth_place = [[Tullos, Louisiana]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 1
| weight_lb   = 230
| high_school = [[Bonanza High School|Bonanza]] ([[Las Vegas, Nevada]])
| college     = [[Arizona State Sun Devils football|Arizona St.]]
| draftyear   = 1982
| draftround  = 1
| draftpick   = 9
| teams       =
* [[Atlanta Falcons]] ({{NFL Year|1982}}–{{NFL Year|1988}})
* [[Washington Redskins]] ({{NFL Year|1989}}–{{NFL Year|1991}})
| highlights  =
* [[Super Bowl champion]] ([[Super Bowl XXVI|XXVI]])
* Second-team [[All-Pro]]  ([[1985 All-Pro Team|1985]])
* 3× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1986 Pro Bowl|1985]]–[[1988 Pro Bowl|1987]])
* [[Atlanta Falcons#Ring of Honor|Atlanta Falcons Ring of Honor]]
* First-team [[List of All-Pac-12 Conference football teams|All-Pac-10]] ([[1981 All-Pacific-10 Conference football team|1981]]) 
| statlabel1  = [[Carry (gridiron football)|Rushing yards]]
| statvalue1  = 8,188
| statlabel2  = Average
| statvalue2  = 4.1
| statlabel3  = [[Touchdown]]s
| statvalue3  = 69
| pfr         = RiggGe00 
}}

'''Gerald Antonio Riggs''' (born November 6, 1960) is an American former professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[running back]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL) for the [[Atlanta Falcons]] from 1982 to 1988 and the [[Washington Redskins]] from 1989 to 1991.

Before his NFL career, he attended [[Bonanza High School]] in [[Las Vegas, Nevada]]<ref>[http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/1999/Dec-24-Fri-1999/sports/12609601.html  Riggs' High School information]</ref> and after graduation attended [[Arizona State University]] in [[Tempe, Arizona]]. He played sparingly in 1978, running for 410 yards and four touchdowns along with 10 catches for 126 yards. In 1979, he ran for 363 yards with three touchdowns and 14 catches for 120 yards and one touchdown. In 1980, he continued in a backup role and ran for 422 yards with four touchdowns with 15 catches for 165 yards. As a starter in 1981, he ran for 891 yards with six touchdowns and an average of six yards per carry, while also recording 11 catches for 139 yards in 11 games.

He would close out his collegiate career with 2,086 yards and 17 touchdowns on the ground and 50 catches for 550 yards.  In the 1982 NFL draft, he was selected with the 9th overall pick by Atlanta.

Riggs made the [[Pro Bowl]] three times in his career from 1985 to 1987.  His best season was in 1985, when he rushed for 1,719 yards and ten touchdowns, while also catching 33 passes for 267 yards, all without a fumble.  He was the only running back in the 1980s to record a 1,000 yard rushing season without a fumble.  In the three seasons from 1984 to 1986, Riggs amassed a whopping 5,212 combined rushing and receiving yards, and scored 32 touchdowns.  In his seven years with the Falcons, he rushed for 6,631 yards, making him the franchise all-time leading rusher. Prior to the 1989 season, Riggs was traded to the Washington Redskins.

In his final year of 1991, Riggs rushed for 248 yards and 11 touchdowns, assisting his team to a 14–2 record.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gerald Riggs 1991 Game Log |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiggGe00/gamelog/1991/ |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>  He is the only player to rush for 11 touchdowns in fewer than 80 attempts in a single season.  He went on to rush for four touchdowns in Washington's two playoff games, and two touchdowns in Washington's 37–24 win over the [[Buffalo Bills]] in [[Super Bowl XXVI]]; it was the last game he played in. His six touchdowns in the postseason tied an NFL record.

Riggs finished his 10 NFL seasons with 8,188 rushing yards and 69 touchdowns, along with 201 receptions for 1,516 yards. Riggs holds the NFL all-time record for most receptions (201) without a receiving touchdown.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Career Most Receptions Without A Touchdown |url=https://www.statmuse.com/nfl/ask/career-most-receptions-without-a-touchdown |access-date=2023-10-24 |website=StatMuse |language=en}}</ref>

He is the father of [[Gerald Riggs, Jr.]], former running back at the [[University of Tennessee]], who played for the [[Miami Dolphins]], and [[Cody Riggs]], a [[cornerback]] for the [[Tennessee Titans]].

==NFL career statistics==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! colspan="2"| Legend
|-
| style="background:#afe6ba; width:3em;"|
| Won the [[Super Bowl]]
|-
| style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|
| Led the league
|-
| '''Bold'''
| Career high
|}

===Regular season===
{| class= "wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="2"| Games
! colspan="6"| Rushing
! colspan="5"| Receiving
! colspan="2"| Fumbles
|-
! GP !! GS !! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! Y/G !! Lng !! TD !! Rec !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD !! Fum !! FR
|-
! [[1982 NFL season|1982]] || [[1982 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| 9 || 0 || 78 || 299 || 3.8 || 33.2 || 37 || 5 || 23 || 185 || 8.0 || 15 || 0 || 1 || 0
|-
! [[1983 NFL season|1983]] || [[1983 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| 14 || 0 || 100 || 437 || '''4.4''' || 31.2 || 40 || 8 || 17 || 149 || 8.8 || 25 || 0 || 7 || 1
|-
! [[1984 NFL season|1984]] || [[1984 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| 15 || 14 || 353 || 1,486 || 4.3 || 99.1 || 57 || '''13''' || '''42''' || '''277''' || 6.6 || 21 || 0 || '''11''' || '''2'''
|-
! [[1985 NFL season|1985]] || [[1985 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || style="background:#cfecec;"|'''397''' || '''1,719''' || 4.3 || '''107.4''' || 50 || 10 || 33 || 267 || 8.1 || 44 || 0 || 6 || 1
|-
! [[1986 NFL season|1986]] || [[1986 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| '''16''' || 15 || 343 || 1,327 || 3.9 || 82.9 || 31 || 9 || 24 || 136 || 5.7 || 11 || 0 || 6 || 1
|-
! [[1987 NFL season|1987]]|| [[1987 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| 12 || 12 || 203 || 875 || 4.3 || 72.9 || 44 || 2 || 25 || 199 || 8.0 || '''48''' || 0 || 4 || 1
|-
! [[1988 NFL season|1988]] || [[1988 Atlanta Falcons season|ATL]]
| 9 || 9 || 113 || 488 || 4.3 || 54.2 || 34 || 1 || 22 || 171 || 7.8 || 30 || 0 || 3 || 0
|-
! [[1989 NFL season|1989]] || [[1989 Washington Redskins season|WAS]]
| 12 || 7 || 201 || 834 || 4.1 || 69.5 || '''58''' || 4 || 7 || 67 || '''9.6''' || 13 || 0 || 3 || 0
|-
! [[1990 NFL season|1990]]|| [[1990 Washington Redskins season|WAS]]
| 10 || 0 || 123 || 475 || 3.9 || 47.5 || 20 || 6 || 7 || 60 || 8.6 || 18 || 0 || 2 || 1
|-
! style="background:#afe6ba;"|[[1991 NFL season|1991]] || [[1991 Washington Redskins season|WAS]]
| '''16''' || 0 || 78 || 248 || 3.2 || 15.5 || 32 || 11 || 1 || 5 || 5.0 || 5 || 0 || 1 || 0
|-
! colspan="2"|[https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiggGe00.htm Career] || 129 || 73 || 1,989 || 8,188 || 4.1 || 63.5 || 58 || 69 || 201 || 1,516 || 7.5 || 48 || 0 || 38 || 6
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiggGe00.htm Gerald Riggs career stats]

{{1982 NFL Draft}}
{{FalconsFirstPick}}
{{Atlanta Falcons 1982 draft navbox}}
{{Atlanta Falcons}}
{{FalconsRing}}
{{Super Bowl XXVI}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Riggs, Gerald}}
[[Category:1960 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American football running backs]]
[[Category:Arizona State Sun Devils football players]]
[[Category:Atlanta Falcons players]]
[[Category:Washington Redskins players]]
[[Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Las Vegas]]