1983 Washington Redskins season explained

Team:	Washington Redskins
Year:	1983
Record:	14–2
Division Place:	1st NFC East
Owner:	Jack Kent Cooke
General Manager:	Bobby Beathard
Coach:	Joe Gibbs
President:	Edward Bennett Williams
Off Coach:	Joe Bugel
Def Coach:	Richie Petitbon
Stadium:	RFK Stadium
Playoffs:	Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Rams) 51–7 Won NFC Championship (vs. 49ers) 24–21 Lost Super Bowl XVIII (vs. Raiders) 9–38
Shortnavlink:	Redskins seasons

The Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 52nd season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 47th in Washington, D.C. The season began with the team trying to win consecutive Super Bowls, following their victory in Super Bowl XVII against the Miami Dolphins. Washington's 14–2 record was a franchise record and the best in the NFL. Their two losses were by a combined two points. Though the Redskins won the NFC Championship and advanced to a second consecutive Super Bowl, they were blown out by the Los Angeles Raiders 38–9 despite being 3-point favorites. They were the first defending Super Bowl champions to qualify for the playoffs since the 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Redskins' 541 points scored and +209 point differential was the best in the league, with the 541 points setting an NFL record at the time.^[1] The 1983 Redskins also had a turnover margin of +43, an NFL record.^[2] Washington was the first team since the merger to record more than 60 takeaways (61).^[3]

This season is cornerback Darrell Green's first in the league. He would spend 20 seasons with the team until his retirement in 2002.

The 27-12 victory on September 18 against the Kansas City Chiefs is the only win in franchise history against them as of 2023.

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance	Game recap
1		Dallas Cowboys	L 30–31	0–1	RFK Stadium	55,045	Recap
2	September 11	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 23–13	1–1	Veterans Stadium	69,542	Recap
3	September 18	Kansas City Chiefs	W 27–12	2–1	RFK Stadium	52,610	Recap
4	September 25	at Seattle Seahawks	W 27–17	3–1	Kingdome	60,718	Recap
5	October 2	Los Angeles Raiders	W 37–35	4–1	RFK Stadium	54,106	Recap
6	October 9	at St. Louis Cardinals	W 38–14	5–1	Busch Memorial Stadium	42,698	Recap
7		at Green Bay Packers	L 47–48	5–2	Lambeau Field	55,255	Recap
8	October 23	Detroit Lions	W 38–17	6–2	RFK Stadium	43,189	Recap
9		at San Diego Chargers	W 27–24	7–2	Jack Murphy Stadium	46,114	Recap
10	November 6	St. Louis Cardinals	W 45–7	8–2	RFK Stadium	51,380	Recap
11	November 13	at New York Giants	W 33–17	9–2	Giants Stadium	71,482	Recap
12	November 20	at Los Angeles Rams	W 42–20	10–2	Anaheim Stadium	63,031	Recap
13	November 27	Philadelphia Eagles	W 28–24	11–2	RFK Stadium	54,324	Recap
14	December 4	Atlanta Falcons	W 37–21	12–2	RFK Stadium	52,074	Recap
15	December 11	at Dallas Cowboys	W 31–10	13–2	Texas Stadium	65,074	Recap
16		New York Giants	W 31–22	14–2	RFK Stadium	53,874	Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 5: vs. Los Angeles Raiders

^[4]

Week 15: at Dallas Cowboys

^[5]

Week 16: vs. New York Giants

Playoffs

Round	Date	Opponent (seed)	Result	Venue	Attendance	Game recap
Divisional	January 1, 1984	Los Angeles Rams (5)	W 51–7	RFK Stadium	55,363	Recap
Conference Championship	January 8, 1984	San Francisco 49ers (2)	W 24–21	RFK Stadium	55,363	Recap
Super Bowl XVIII	January 22, 1984	Los Angeles Raiders (A1)	L 9–38	Tampa Stadium	72,920	Recap

January 1, 1984

NFC: Washington Redskins 51, Los Angeles Rams 7

January 8, 1984

NFC Championship: Washington Redskins 24, San Francisco 49ers 21

Awards and records

• Joe Gibbs, National Football League Coach of the Year Award
• John Riggins, Bert Bell Award^[6]
• Joe Theismann, AP NFL MVP
• Joe Theismann, PFWA NFL MVP
• Joe Theismann, NEA NFL MVP
• Joe Theismann, National Football League Offensive Player of the Year Award
• John Riggins, 1,347 Rushing Yards and set record with 24 rushing TDs (Held the TD record for 12 Years)
• Team scoring: 541 points (Held record until 1998)
• Turnover differential: +43 (Record still stands today. Next closest is Cleveland with +33 in 1946.)

Notes and References

1. http://pfref.com/tiny/V40Cl Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1980 to 1989, in the NFL, in the regular season, sorted by descending Points For
2. The team with the second-best turnover margin, the 1946 Browns, had a margin of 33: Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1940 to 2011, in the regular season, sorted by descending Turnover Margin.
3. As of the 2011 season, only the 1983 Redskins and the 1984 Seattle Seahawks (63) have recorded more than 60 takeaways.
4. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198310020was.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com
5. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198312110dal.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com
6. Web site: Maxwell Football Club - Bert Bell Award Past Recipients . 2010-06-28 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090619081037/http://www.maxwellfootballclub.org/content/awards/bell/past_bell.htm . 2009-06-19 .