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A man of deep faith and upstanding character, Monk has made it to point to donate time and resources to philanthropic work with a particular focus on kids and those impacted by the criminal justice system.

Alongside former teammates Charles Mann, Earnest Byner and Tim Johnson, he co-founded the Good Samaritan Foundation, which gives young people a safe haven for ongoing homework assistance, mentoring, work-readiness training, scholarship help and more. Monk is also the co-sponsor of the "I Have A Dream" program for 60 students from D.C.'s Tyrell School, which guarantees a college education to the group and provides tutors, testing and other support. Additionally, Monk hosts youth football camps, personally gives a scholarship to a deserving senior student-athlete from his high school alma mater and has helped the Black Student Scholarship Fund.

In 1980, for the first time in franchise history, Washington selected a wide receiver in the first round. The player, a prolific offensive weapon out of Syracuse named James Arthur Monk, had caught the eye of wide receiver coach Charley Taylor during a scouting trip. Taylor's intention was to look at a defensive back on the visit, but it was Monk who wowed him.

"I watched him all that day, and then I talked to him for a while and watched some game films," Taylor told the Washington Times in 1989. "I came back and said we had to take this guy. There was no doubt we had a steal."

Monk – a 6-3, 210-pound force – had shown himself to be a special prospect throughout his time with the Orangemen. During his freshman and senior seasons, he won the Lambert Trophy, given to the top college football player in the Eastern U.S. His litany of college highlights included setting a school record for receiving yards per game average (47) and recording the greatest game by a receiver in Syracuse history with 14 receptions for 188 yards and two touchdowns. He also led the Orangemen to their first bowl victory, the 1979 Independence Bowl, in 13 years.

Monk hardly skipped a beat once he entered the pros. During his first year with the Burgundy & Gold, he hauled in 58 catches, the most ever for a Washington rookie, and was named a unanimous All-Rookie selection.

During Joe Gibbs' first season in Washington the following year, Monk started all 16 games and became a foundational piece of the head-turning team the new coach was working to build. "He's big, he's strong, he's intelligent, he has everything," the Hall of Fame coach said of his rising receiver.

In 1982, Monk was a primary passing option for quarterback Joe Theismann as Washington went on to earn its first playoff appearance in six years and eventually lifted its first-ever Lombardi Trophy.

The finest season for the Washington wide receiver came in 1984 when he caught a then-NFL record 106 receptions for a career-best 1,372 yards. In six games that year Monk caught eight or more passes, and in five games amassed 100 yards or more. Against San Francisco in Week 2, the wideout snagged 10 passes for 200 yards. His catch on third-and-19 late in the regular season finale against St. Louis would clinch the NFC East for Washington.

For his performances, Monk was named team MVP and garnered his first Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections. There was more to come in the mid-80s. He went over the 1,000-yard mark in 1985 and 1986, becoming the first Washington wide receiver to produce three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. He also became the first member of the Burgundy & Gold to catch 70 or more passes in three consecutive seasons. His 1985 and 1986 campaigns delivered two more Pro Bowl nods.

Following the 1987 season, Monk and Washington secured the team's second Super Bowl trophy. Known as "The Posse," wide receivers Monk, Gary Clark and Ricky Sanders became one of the most fearsome corps in the league during this period and the first trio of NFL receivers to each gain 1,000 yards in a season. In 1989, in a win over San Diego, the #81 broke the record for all-time catches by a Washington player with 650.

Though he was a star, Monk was never one to command attention. He instead preferred to let his play and demeanor do the talking.

"He was a leader," Gibbs told Richard Justice of the Washington Post. "Here's a guy that probably said the least of any guy on the team, yet he was one of our best leaders. I know the couple of times he did say something, it stirred the whole team up. That's one of the things you learn about sports. The players know who the leaders are."

In the tail end of his career, Monk saw his already impressive resume propel into a different class. In 1992, the wide out had his most impactful Super Bowl performance, catching seven passes for 113 yards in Washington's victory over the Buffalo Bills. In October of that year against Denver on Monday Night Football, he set the then-NFL record for career receptions with his 820th catch and was later carried off the field by his teammates.

In 1994, Monk retired with the most consecutive games with a catch. He also became the first player in the league to record a touchdown reception in 15 consecutive seasons and the first player ever to record at least 35 receptions in 15 consecutive seasons. During his 14 seasons with Washington, he converted nearly two-thirds of his 888 catches into first downs.

Monk was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008. Upon his induction, he received the longest standing ovation in Pro Football Hall of Fame history.