The 1983 Dallas Cowboys season was the franchise's 24th season in the National Football League. Despite a hot start that saw them win their first seven games, the Cowboys finished second in the NFC East. They qualified for the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season, setting a new record for most consecutive playoff appearances by a team in NFL history (the previous mark was jointly held by three teams, one of which was the 1966–1973 Cowboys). The record was tied by the Indianapolis Colts in 2010 before the New England Patriots broke the record in 2019.

Summary The team started the season with seven straight victories, including a memorable Monday night win over the Washington Redskins in which the team erased a 20-point halftime deficit and prevailed, 31–30. The Cowboys were particularly strong on offense, led by quarterback Danny White and running back Tony Dorsett. The Cowboys scored a team record 479 points and staged a few come-from-behind victories during the season. However, the defense gave up many points, despite strong play from Randy White, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, and Everson Walls. In particular, the young secondary was guilty of giving up many big plays throughout the season.

Late in the season, the Cowboys met the Redskins at Texas Stadium with the NFC East crown up for grabs. Both teams entered the game with 12–2 records, but the defending champion Redskins proved too much for the Cowboys and emerged with a 31–10 victory, giving them the NFC East title. With the Cowboys trailing 14–10 in the third quarter, the Cowboys failed on a fourth and one at midfield. The play was a key turning point. There appeared to be a miscommunication between quarterback Danny White and Tom Landry as to whether to run the play. The failed play led to a rare emotional outburst from Landry as he yelled "No, Danny, no." After a 42–17 drubbing at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers the following week, the Cowboys faced the Los Angeles Rams in the wild card game of the NFC playoffs. Despite having the home field advantage, the Cowboys fell, 24–17.

NFL draft

Undrafted free agents

+ 1983 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeRaúl AllegreKickerTexasJerry SchmidtDef. LineCal Poly SLOBill BatesSafetyTennesseeBroderick ThompsonTackleKansasMark TuineiTackleHawaii

Roster

Dallas Cowboys 1983 roster Quarterbacks Glenn Carano Gary Hogeboom Danny White P

Running backs Gary Allen Tony Dorsett Robert Newhouse Timmy Newsome Ron Springs

Wide receivers Doug Donley Tony Hill Butch Johnson Drew Pearson

Tight ends Doug Cosbie Billy Joe DuPree Cleo Simmons Offensive linemen Brian Baldinger G/C Jim Cooper T Pat Donovan T Kurt Petersen G Phil Pozderac T Tom Rafferty C Howard Richards G Chris Schultz T Herbert Scott G Glen Titensor C/G

Defensive linemen Larry Bethea DE John Dutton DT Jim Jeffcoat DE Ed Jones DE Harvey Martin DE Don Smerek DT Mark Tuinei DT Randy White DTLinebackers Bob Breunig MLB Anthony Dickerson OLB Mike Hegman OLB Bruce Huther MLB Angelo King OLB Jeff Rohrer OLB Michael Walter OLB

Defensive backs Bill Bates SS Dextor Clinkscale SS Michael Downs FS Ron Fellows CB Rod Hill CB Dennis Thurman CB Everson Walls CB

Special teams Jim Miller P Rafael Septién KReserve lists Bryan Caldwell DE (IR) James Jones RB (IR) Scott McLean LB (IR) Chuck McSwain RB (IR) Kirk Phillips WR (IR) Dan Taylor G (IR) Gregg Veldman TE (IR) John Warren P (IR)

Rookies in italics 49 active, 8 inactive

Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Game Site Attendance Recap 1 at Washington Redskins W 31–30 1–0 RFK Stadium 55,045 Recap 2 September 11 at St. Louis Cardinals W 34–17 2–0 Busch Stadium 48,532 Recap 3 September 18 New York Giants W 28–13 3–0 Texas Stadium 62,347 Recap 4 September 25 New Orleans Saints W 21–20 4–0 Texas Stadium 62,136 Recap 5 October 2 at Minnesota Vikings W 37–24 5–0 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 60,774 Recap 6 October 9 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 27–24 6–0 Texas Stadium 63,308 Recap 7 October 16 Philadelphia Eagles W 37–7 7–0 Texas Stadium 63,070 Recap 8 October 23 Los Angeles Raiders L 38–40 7–1 Texas Stadium 64,991 Recap 9 October 30 at New York Giants W 38–20 8–1 Giants Stadium 76,142 Recap 10 November 6 at Philadelphia Eagles W 27–20 9–1 Veterans Stadium 71,236 Recap 11 November 13 at San Diego Chargers L 23–24 9–2 Jack Murphy Stadium 46,192 Recap 12 November 20 Kansas City Chiefs W 41–21 10–2 Texas Stadium 64,103 Recap 13 November 24 St. Louis Cardinals W 35–17 11–2 Texas Stadium 60,974 Recap 14 December 4 at Seattle Seahawks W 35–10 12–2 Kingdome 63,352 Recap 15 December 11 Washington Redskins L 10–31 12–3 Texas Stadium 65,074 Recap 16 at San Francisco 49ers L 17–42 12–4 Candlestick Park 59,957 Recap Division opponents are in bold text

The October 16 and November 6 games against the Philadelphia Eagles were played with locations switched from the original schedule, because of October 16 conflict with game 5 of the baseball World Series.

Season summary

Week 1

Week 2

Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 26, 2013.

Week 3

Pro-Football-Reference.com

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

Pro-Football-Reference.com

Week 13

Week 14

Week 15

Week 16

Wild card playoffs

December 26, 1983

NFC: Los Angeles Rams 24, Dallas Cowboys 17

Standings

Playoffs

Round Date Opponent Result Game Site Attendance Recap Wild Card Los Angeles Rams L 17–24 Texas Stadium 43,521 Recap

Awards Five players represented the Cowboys in the 1984 Pro Bowl: Doug Cosbie, Tony Dorsett, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Everson Walls, and Randy White. White and Walls were voted to the Associated Press' All-NFL first team, while Dorsett was voted to the AP's All-NFL second team.

Publications The Football Encyclopedia Total Football Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes

References

External links 1983 Dallas Cowboys Pro Football Hall of Fame Dallas Cowboys Official Site