When the Cincinnati Bengals selected Anthony Muñoz with the third overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft, they knew they were taking a risk.
Nobody questioned the talent. The concern was whether his body would allow that talent to survive in the NFL. Muñoz had already undergone multiple knee surgeries at USC and missed almost his entire senior season. For a position built around planting, moving and absorbing collisions from enormous defensive linemen, damaged knees were enough to scare teams away.
Cincinnati took him anyway.
Thirteen seasons later, Anthony Muñoz had become the greatest offensive lineman in NFL history.
He possessed everything you could possibly want from a left tackle: size, strength, balance, athleticism, intelligence, technique and a relentless desire to finish blocks. Speed rushers couldn’t simply run around him. Power rushers couldn’t consistently go through him. In the running game, Muñoz could move defenders at the line before getting into space and finding somebody else.
We’ve reached #1 on the Ethical Sports Takes list of the greatest offensive linemen in NFL history, and nobody represents complete offensive-line play better than Anthony Muñoz.
The Draft Risk That Changed Cincinnati
Muñoz’s college résumé at USC was unusual. He was talented enough to become the third overall selection despite barely playing during his senior season because of a knee injury.
The Bengals saw past the medical concerns.
Muñoz started all 16 games as a rookie in 1980. One year later, he made his first Pro Bowl. Then he made another. And another. And another.
From 1981 through 1991, Anthony Muñoz made 11 consecutive Pro Bowls and earned All-Pro recognition every single season. Nine of those selections were First-Team All-Pro.
The knees everyone worried about hadn’t prevented him from becoming great.
They hadn’t even prevented him from becoming durable.
The Perfect Left Tackle
Left tackle can be one of football’s cruelest assignments. You’re often isolated against the defense’s most dangerous edge rusher, responsible for protecting a quarterback who may never even see the defender you’re trying to stop. One bad rep can destroy an entire play.
Muñoz made the position look controlled.
At 6-foot-6 and roughly 278 pounds, he combined tremendous strength with exceptional feet and agility. His balance allowed him to stay composed against pass rushers trying to beat him with speed, while his power gave him the ability to handle defenders who wanted to attack straight through him.
But technique completed the package.
Muñoz understood leverage, positioning and angles. His hands and feet worked together. He wasn’t simply reacting to defenders; he was controlling where the confrontation happened.
Then came the finish. Muñoz didn’t consider the block complete just because he had initially won. He wanted to stay attached and dominate his opponent until the whistle.
For defensive ends, that meant an afternoon spent trying to solve a problem that rarely had an answer.
Protecting Two MVPs
Great offensive linemen make everybody around them better, and Muñoz spent his career protecting some outstanding Cincinnati offenses.
In 1981, the Bengals reached their first Super Bowl behind NFL MVP Ken Anderson. Seven years later, they returned with another NFL MVP at quarterback in Boomer Esiason.
There was one enormous constant protecting the blind side during both runs.
Anthony Muñoz.
He helped Cincinnati win AFC championships in both 1981 and 1988, giving the franchise two opportunities to win its first Super Bowl. Both ultimately ended in painful losses to the San Francisco 49ers, but the absence of a championship does nothing to diminish what Muñoz accomplished individually.
He did his job at a historically great level for more than a decade.
He Could Even Catch Touchdowns
As if dominating defensive linemen wasn’t enough, Cincinnati occasionally decided to make its massive left tackle an eligible receiver.
It worked.
Muñoz finished his career with seven receptions. Four went for touchdowns.
Think about that for a second.
One of the greatest pass protectors in football history occasionally reported eligible, slipped into the defense and caught touchdown passes. It sounds like a novelty, but it also demonstrates the athletic ability that separated Muñoz from other massive offensive linemen.
He wasn’t merely big.
He was an athlete who happened to play offensive tackle.
The Résumé
Anthony Muñoz’s résumé looks exactly like what you’d expect from the player sitting at #1.
Pro Football Hall of Fame — Class of 1998
First-Ballot Hall of Famer
9× First-Team All-Pro
2× Second-Team All-Pro
11× Consecutive Pro Bowl Selection
3× NFL Offensive Lineman of the Year
NFL 1980s All-Decade Team
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
1991 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year
Cincinnati Bengals Ring of Honor
2× AFC Champion
Third Overall Pick — 1980 NFL Draft
Muñoz didn’t simply dominate his own era. When the NFL has repeatedly looked back across its entire history to identify its greatest players, his name keeps appearing.
He made the NFL’s 75th Anniversary Team. Twenty-five years later, after another generation of elite offensive tackles had entered the league, he made the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team too.
His place in history didn’t shrink with time.
It survived it.
More Than Dominance
There is another part of Muñoz’s résumé worth recognizing.
In 1991, he received the NFL Man of the Year Award, now known as the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, recognizing excellence on the field alongside service away from it.
That’s an unusual combination. One of football’s most physically dominant players was also being recognized for what he represented beyond football.
By the time Muñoz became eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1998, there wasn’t much debate left.
First ballot.
Exactly where he belonged.
The Standard
Larry Allen may have been stronger. John Hannah may have been the greatest guard. Jim Otto may have been tougher. Trent Williams may represent the prototype for the modern tackle.
But when everything is put together — dominance, technique, athleticism, consistency, longevity, accolades and historical recognition — Anthony Muñoz stands above them all.
For 11 consecutive seasons, the NFL sent him to the Pro Bowl. For those same 11 seasons, he earned All-Pro recognition. Nine times, he was First-Team All-Pro.
He protected two MVP quarterbacks on two Super Bowl teams. He dominated as both a run blocker and pass protector. He earned recognition on the NFL’s 75th and 100th Anniversary teams and walked into Canton on his first opportunity.
And somehow, the career began with people wondering whether his knees would even hold up.
They did.
Everyone standing across from him had the bigger problem.
At #1 on the Ethical Sports Takes list of the greatest offensive linemen in NFL history, Anthony Muñoz isn’t simply our greatest tackle.
He’s our greatest offensive lineman ever.
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That’s a wrap on our Top 5 NFL Offensive Linemen of All Time.
#5 Trent Williams
#4 Jim Otto
#3 John Hannah
#2 Larry Allen
#1 Anthony Muñoz
Five legends. Five different forms of dominance.
Next position: Defensive Line.
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