| 1982 Washington Redskins season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Jack Kent Cooke |
| President | Edward Bennett Williams |
| General manager | Bobby Beathard |
| Head coach | Joe Gibbs |
| Offensive coordinator | Joe Bugel |
| Defensive coordinator | Richie Petitbon |
| Home field | RFK Stadium |
| Local radio | WMAL–AM 630 |
| Results | |
| Record | 8–1 |
| Division place | 1st NFC |
| Playoff finish | Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Lions) 31–7 Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Vikings) 21–7 Won NFC Championship (vs. Cowboys) 31–17 Won Super Bowl XVII (vs. Dolphins) 27–17 |
| Pro Bowlers | 5[1] |
| AP All-Pros | 1[2] |
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The 1982 Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 51st season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 46th in Washington, D.C. Although the Redskins lost all their preseason games,[3] they advanced from an 8–8 record the previous season to become one of the only two teams in NFL history to win the Super Bowl after not winning a pre-season game (the other being the 2021 Los Angeles Rams). The 1990 Buffalo Bills and 2000 New York Giants also made it to the Super Bowl after a winless pre-season, but they did not win the Super Bowl.[3]
The 1982 NFL season was shortened from sixteen games per team to nine because of a players’ strike. The NFL adopted a special 16-team playoff tournament; division standings were ignored, and the top eight teams from each conference earned playoff berths with seeds corresponding to their position in the conference standings. With the best record in the NFC, Washington received the number one seed in the conference for the playoff tournament. Although they and the Los Angeles Raiders had identical 8–1 records, the Redskins were the best in the league because they had a +62-point differential, which was 2 more than the Raiders.
The Redskins marched through the NFC playoffs, beating each of their opponents by an average of 19 points. In a rematch of Washington's only prior Super Bowl appearance ten years prior, the Redskins—in a game famous for Washington's "70 Chip" play on fourth-and-1—went on to beat the Miami Dolphins 27–17 to win Super Bowl XVII. It was the Redskins’ first ever Super Bowl victory, and their first NFL Championship in 40 years.[4] Combining the post-season and their first Super Bowl victory, the Redskins finished the season with an overall record of 12–1.
NFL Films produced a documentary about the team's season entitled Hail To The Redskins; it was narrated by John Facenda. On March 22, 2007, NFL Network aired America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions, the 1982 Washington Redskins, with team commentary from Russ Grimm, Joe Theismann and Rick Walker, and narrated by Alec Baldwin.
- ^ "1983 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "1982 NFL All-Pros". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ a b Winless in the Pre-Season
- ^ "1982 Washington Redskins". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved October 11, 2012.