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 2 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.Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1980 to 1989, in the NFL, in the regular season, sorted by descending Points For, the record was eventually broken in 1998 by the Minnesota Vikings with 556, and then broken again in 2007 by the New England Patriots with 589). The 1983 Redskins also had a turnover margin of +43, an NFL record.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. Washington was the first team since the merger to record more than 60 takeaways (61).As of the 2011 season, only the 1983 Redskins and the 1984 Seattle Seahawks (63) have recorded more than 60 takeaways.
This season was 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 2024.
Personnel Coaches / Staff
Final roster
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Gamerecap 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 1: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
Week 3: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
To date, this marks the only time that Washington has defeated Kansas City.
Week 4: at Seattle Seahawks
Week 5: vs. Los Angeles Raiders
Pro-Football-Reference.com
Week 6: at St. Louis Cardinals
Week 7: at Green Bay Packers
Week 8: vs. Detroit Lions
Week 9: at San Diego Chargers
Week 10: vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Week 11: at New York Giants
Week 12: at Los Angeles Rams
Week 13: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Week 14: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Week 15: at Dallas Cowboys
Pro-Football-Reference.com
Week 16: vs. New York Giants
Playoffs Round Date Opponent (seed) Result Venue Attendance Gamerecap 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
Super Bowl XVIII: Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington Redskins 9
Standings
Awards and records Joe Gibbs, National Football League Coach of the Year Award John Riggins, Bert Bell Award 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.)
References