1986 Washington Redskins season

NFL team season

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The 1986 Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 55th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 51st in Washington, D.C. The team improved on their 10–6 record from 1985 and returned to the playoffs after missing them the previous year, finishing with a 12–4 record, a second place finish in the NFC East, and qualified for the playoffs as a wild card. They defeated the Los Angeles Rams 19–7 in the NFC Wild Card Game at RFK Stadium, then upset the defending champion Chicago Bears 21–17 in the Divisional Playoffs. The season came to an end in the NFC Championship Game when the Redskins were defeated by their division rivals, the New York Giants 17–0.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Roster

**1986 Washington Redskins roster**

	Quarterbacks 11 Mark Rypien 10 Jay Schroeder 17 Doug Williams Running backs 35 Keith Griffin PR 31 Ken Jenkins PR 38 George Rogers 24 Kelvin Bryant 29 Reggie Branch 26 Rick Badanjek Wide receivers 84 Gary Clark 81 Art Monk 46 Ricky Sanders 88 Derek Holloway 83 James Noble 89 Clarence Verdin 80 Eric Yarber Tight ends 86 Clint Didier 87 Terry Orr 85 Don Warren 82 Anthony Jones 88 Todd Frain		Offensive linemen 53 Jeff Bostic C 68 Russ Grimm C 66 Joe Jacoby T 73 Mark May T 63 Raleigh McKenzie G 69 R.C. Thielemann G 60 Dan McQuaid T/G 76 Ron Tilton G Defensive linemen 65 Dave Butz DT 77 Darryl Grant DT 72 Dexter Manley DE 77 Darryl Grant DT 71 Charles Mann DE 74 Markus Koch 78 Dean Hamel DT 64 Steve Hamilton DE 67 Tom Beasley		Linebackers 55 Mel Kaufman LLB 57 Rich Milot 52 Neal Olkewicz MLB 51 Monte Coleman 56 Calvin Daniels 54 Joe Krakoski 59 Jeff Paine 59 Angelo Snipes 58 Shawn Burks Defensive backs 32 Vernon Dean CB 28 Darrell Green CB 48 Ken Coffey SS 23 Todd Bowles 40 Alvin Walton 45 Barry Wilburn CB 22 Curtis Jordan FS 41 Tim Morrison CB Special teams 12 Steve Cox P 3 Mark Moseley K 14 Max Zendejas K 4 Jess Atkinson K		Reserve lists 50 Ravin Caldwell LB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 56 Anthony Copeland LB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 30 Dwight Garner KR (IRTooltip Injured reserve) -- Kurt Gouveia MLB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance	Game recap
1	September 7	Philadelphia Eagles	W 41–14	1–0	RFK Stadium	53,982	Recap
2	September 14	Los Angeles Raiders	W 10–6	2–0	RFK Stadium	55,235	Recap
3	September 21	at San Diego Chargers	W 30–27	3–0	Jack Murphy Stadium	57,853	Recap
4	September 28	Seattle Seahawks	W 19–14	4–0	RFK Stadium	54,157	Recap
5	October 5	at New Orleans Saints	W 14–6	5–0	Louisiana Superdome	57,378	Recap
6	October 12	at Dallas Cowboys	L 6–30	5–1	Texas Stadium	63,264	Recap
7	October 19	St. Louis Cardinals	W 28–21	6–1	RFK Stadium	53,494	Recap
8	October 27	at New York Giants	L 20–27	6–2	Giants Stadium	75,923	Recap
9	November 2	Minnesota Vikings	W 44–38 (OT)	7–2	RFK Stadium	51,928	Recap
10	November 9	at Green Bay Packers	W 16–7	8–2	Lambeau Field	47,728	Recap
11	November 17	San Francisco 49ers	W 14–6	9–2	RFK Stadium	54,774	Recap
12	November 23	Dallas Cowboys	W 41–14	10–2	RFK Stadium	55,642	Recap
13	November 30	at St. Louis Cardinals	W 20–17	11–2	Busch Memorial Stadium	35,637	Recap
14	December 7	New York Giants	L 14–24	11–3	RFK Stadium	55,642	Recap
15	December 13	at Denver Broncos	L 30–31	11–4	Mile High Stadium	75,905	Recap
16	December 21	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 21–14	12–4	Veterans Stadium	61,816	Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Season summary

Week 1 vs Eagles

Week One: Philadelphia Eagles (0–0) at Washington Redskins (0–0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	7	7	0	0	14
Redskins	3	17	14	7	41

at RFK Stadium • Washington, D.C.

Date: September 7
Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C) • Wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
Game attendance: 53,982
Referee: Gene Barth
Pro-Football-Reference.com, The Football Database

Game information

Eagles

Ron Jaworski
23/40, 227 Yds, 2 TD, INT
Randall Cunningham
2 Rush, 31 Yds
Phil Smith
3 Rec, 50 Yds

Redskins

Jay Schroeder
19/38, 238 Yds, 2 TD, INT
George Rogers
20 Rush, 104 Yds, TD
Gary Clark
7 Rec, 100 Yds

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	PHI	WSH
1	9:21				Redskins	19-yard field goal by Mark Moseley	0	3
1	6:59				Eagles	Ron Johnson 17-yard touchdown reception from Ron Jaworski, Paul McFadden kick good	7	3
2	8:48				Redskins	Kelvin Bryant 36-yard touchdown reception from Jay Schroeder, Mark Moseley kick good	7	10
2	5:39				Redskins	Jay Schroeder 1-yard touchdown run, Mark Moseley kick good	7	17
2	0:33				Eagles	Junior Tautalatasi 3-yard touchdown reception from Ron Jaworski, Paul McFadden kick good	14	17
2	0:00				Redskins	55-yard field goal by Steve Cox	14	20
3	7:51				Redskins	Clint Didier 36-yard touchdown reception from Jay Scroeder, Mark Moseley kick good	14	27
3	4:26				Redskins	Kelvin Bryant 16-yard touchdown run, Mark Moseley kick good	14	34
4	3:36				Redskins	George Rogers 5-yard touchdown run, Mark Moseley kick good	14	41
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							14	41

Week 4: vs Seattle Seahawks

Week Four: Seattle Seahawks at Washington Redskins – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	7	0	0	7	14
Redskins	6	3	7	3	19

at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

Date: September 28
Game time: 1:00 pm local
Game weather: cloudy, 67 °F (19 °C), 90% humidity, wind SE 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
Game attendance: 54,157
Referee: Pat Haggerty
TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones and Jimmy Cefalo
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

SEA – Curt Warner 2-yard run (Norm Johnson kick), 10:05 (SEA 7–0)
WAS – George Rogers 24-yard run (PAT failed), 5:21 (SEA 7–6)

Second quarter

WAS – Steve Cox 57-yard field goal, 0:12 (WAS 9–7)

Third quarter

WAS – George Rogers 7-yard run (Mark Moseley kick), 1:25 (WAS 16–7)

Fourth quarter

WAS – Mark Moseley 36-yard field goal, 8:14 (WAS 19–7)
SEA – Steve Largent 11-yard pass from Dave Krieg (Norm Johnson kick), 1:50 (WAS 19–14)

Top passers

SEA – Dave Krieg: 19/32, 219 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
WAS – Jay Schroeder: 14/26, 195 yds

Top rushers

SEA – Curt Warner: 16 car, 106 yds, 1 TD
WAS – George Rogers: 25 car, 115 yds, 2 TD

Top receivers

SEA – Byron Franklin: 5 rec, 79 yds
WAS – Art Monk: 5 rec, 103 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

SEA – 213 – 148 – 361 – 2
WAS – 195 – 162 – 357 – 1

Standings

NFC East
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
New York Giants⁽¹⁾	14	2	0	.875	7–1	11–1	371	236	W9
Washington Redskins⁽⁴⁾	12	4	0	.750	5–3	9–3	368	296	W1
Dallas Cowboys	7	9	0	.438	5–3	6–6	346	337	L5
Philadelphia Eagles	5	10	1	.344	1–6–1	3–8–1	256	312	L1
St. Louis Cardinals	4	11	1	.281	1–6–1	3–10–1	218	351	W1

Playoffs

Schedule

Round	Date	Opponent (seed)	Result	Venue	Attendance	Game recap
Wild Card	December 28	Los Angeles Rams (5)	W 19–7	RFK Stadium	54,180	Recap
Divisional	January 3, 1987	at Chicago Bears (2)	W 27–13	Soldier Field	65,141	Recap
NFC Championship	January 11, 1987	at New York Giants (1)	L 0–17	Giants Stadium	76,633	Recap

NFC Wild Card Game

Washington Redskins 19, Los Angeles Rams 7

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	0	0	7	7
Redskins	10	3	3	3	19

at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 54,180
Referee: Gordon McCarter
TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

NFC Divisional Playoff

Washington Redskins 27, Chicago Bears 13

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Redskins	7	0	7	13	27
Bears	0	13	0	0	13

at Soldier Field, Chicago

Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. CST
Game attendance: 65,141
Referee: Bob McElwee
TV announcers (CBS): Dick Stockton and Dan Dierdorf

In knocking off the defending Super Bowl champion Bears, the Redskins scored their first road playoff win under Joe Gibbs. It would not be the Gibbs-led Redskins' last road playoff win, though, as they scored wins in 1987 at Chicago, in 1990 at Philadelphia, in 1992 at Minnesota, and in 2005 at Tampa.

NFC Championship Game

New York Giants 17, Washington Redskins 0

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Redskins	0	0	0	0	0
Giants	10	7	0	0	17

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 76,633
Referee: Pat Haggerty
TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

References

v t e Washington Commanders
Formerly the Boston Braves (1932), Boston Redskins (1933–1936), Washington Redskins (1937–2019), and Washington Football Team (2020–2021) Based in Landover, Maryland Headquartered in Ashburn, Virginia
Franchise	History Seasons Players Coaches Draft first-round picks Starting quarterbacks Records Broadcasters
Stadiums	Braves Field Fenway Park Griffith Stadium RFK Stadium Commanders Field
Ownership group	Managing partner: Josh Harris Limited partners: Mitchell Rales, Magic Johnson, David Blitzer, Mark Ein, others
Key personnel	Team president: Jason Wright General manager: Adam Peters Head coach: Dan Quinn
Culture	"Hail to the Commanders" Marching Band Major Tuddy Hogettes Chief Zee Redskins name controversy Name change advocates Opinion polls Trademark dispute Original Americans Foundation "Go Fund Yourself" The Replacements Everybody's All-American
Lore	Bears 73, Redskins 0 The Hogs The Fun Bunch The Over-the-Hill Gang Body Bag Game Raljon, Maryland Redskins Rule Ricky Williams trade
Rivalries	Dallas Cowboys New York Giants Philadelphia Eagles
Division championships (15)	1936 1937 1940 1942 1943 1945 1972 1983 1984 1987 1991 1999 2012 2015 2020
Conference championships (5)	1972 1982 1983 1987 1991
League championships (2)	1937 1942
Super Bowl championships (3)	1982 (XVII) 1987 (XXII) 1991 (XXVI)
Hall of Famers	Cliff Battles Sammy Baugh Bill Dudley Turk Edwards Joe Gibbs Darrell Green Russ Grimm Chris Hanburger Ken Houston Sam Huff Deacon Jones Stan Jones Sonny Jurgensen Paul Krause Vince Lombardi Wayne Millner Bobby Mitchell Art Monk John Riggins Bruce Smith Charley Taylor
Affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: East Division
Category Commons

v t e Washington Commanders seasons
Formerly the Boston Braves (1932), Boston Redskins (1933–1936), Washington Redskins (1937–2019), and Washington Football Team (2020–2021)
1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Bold indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl victory Italics indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl appearance

1986 NFL season

East	Central	West	East	Central	West
Buffalo	Cincinnati	Denver	Dallas	Chicago	Atlanta
Indianapolis	Cleveland	Kansas City	NY Giants	Detroit	LA Rams
Miami	Houston	LA Raiders	Philadelphia	Green Bay	New Orleans
New England	Pittsburgh	San Diego	St. Louis	Minnesota	San Francisco
NY Jets		Seattle	Washington	Tampa Bay