The 1979 Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 48th season in the National Football League. The team improved on their 8–8 record from 1978 and finishing 10–6. Although the Redskins were able to improve their record, they were eliminated from playoff contention on the final week of the season after facing the Dallas Cowboys with the NFC East title on the line. Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach led a last-minute comeback to defeat Washington 35–34 to win the division, which combined with the Chicago Bears defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 42–6, resulted in the Redskins losing a points tiebreaker for the final wild-card slot.
Quick Facts Washington Redskins season, Owner ...
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NFL draft
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[1]
Undrafted free agents
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Staff
1979 Washington Redskins staff
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Front office
Head coaches
- Head Coach – Jack Pardee
- Special Assistant to Head Coach – Bob Bowser
Offensive coaches
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Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
- Special Teams – John Hilton
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[2]
Roster
1979 Washington Redskins roster
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Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
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Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
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Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
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Reserve lists
Practice squad
Rookies in italics
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[3]
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Schedule
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Week |
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Record |
Game site |
Attendance |
Recap |
1 |
September 2 |
Houston Oilers |
L 27–29 |
0–1 |
RFK Stadium |
54,582 |
Recap |
2 |
September 9 |
at Detroit Lions |
W 27–24 |
1–1 |
Pontiac Silverdome |
54,991 |
Recap |
3 |
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New York Giants |
W 27–0 |
2–1 |
RFK Stadium |
54,672 |
Recap |
4 |
September 23 |
at St. Louis Cardinals |
W 17–7 |
3–1 |
Busch Memorial Stadium |
50,680 |
Recap |
5 |
September 30 |
at Atlanta Falcons |
W 16–7 |
4–1 |
Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium |
56,819 |
Recap |
6 |
October 7 |
at Philadelphia Eagles |
L 17–28 |
4–2 |
Veterans Stadium |
69,142 |
Recap |
7 |
October 14 |
at Cleveland Browns |
W 13–9 |
5–2 |
Cleveland Stadium |
63,323 |
Recap |
8 |
October 21 |
Philadelphia Eagles |
W 17–7 |
6–2 |
RFK Stadium |
54,442 |
Recap |
9 |
October 28 |
New Orleans Saints |
L 10–14 |
6–3 |
RFK Stadium |
52,133 |
Recap |
10 |
November 4 |
at Pittsburgh Steelers |
L 7–38 |
6–4 |
Three Rivers Stadium |
49,462 |
Recap |
11 |
November 11 |
St. Louis Cardinals |
W 30–28 |
7–4 |
RFK Stadium |
50,868 |
Recap |
12 |
November 18 |
Dallas Cowboys |
W 34–20 |
8–4 |
RFK Stadium |
55,031 |
Recap |
13 |
November 25 |
at New York Giants |
L 6–14 |
8–5 |
Giants Stadium |
72,641 |
Recap |
14 |
December 2 |
Green Bay Packers |
W 38–21 |
9–5 |
RFK Stadium |
51,682 |
Recap |
15 |
December 9 |
Cincinnati Bengals |
W 28–14 |
10–5 |
RFK Stadium |
52,882 |
Recap |
16 |
December 16 |
at Dallas Cowboys |
L 34–35 |
10–6 |
Texas Stadium |
62,867 |
Recap |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |
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[4]
Week 1: vs. Houston Oilers
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Oilers |
6 |
0 |
7 | 16 | 29 |
Redskins |
0 |
17 |
7 | 3 | 27 |
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Week 2: at Detroit Lions
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
0 |
17 |
7 | 3 | 27 |
Lions |
3 |
0 |
0 | 21 | 24 |
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Week 3: vs. New York Giants
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Giants |
0 |
0 |
0 | 0 | 0 |
Redskins |
3 |
14 |
7 | 3 | 27 |
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Week 4: at St. Louis Cardinals
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
14 |
0 |
0 | 3 | 17 |
Cardinals |
0 |
0 |
7 | 0 | 7 |
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Week 5: at Atlanta Falcons
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
3 |
10 |
3 | 0 | 16 |
Falcons |
7 |
0 |
0 | 0 | 7 |
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Week 6: at Philadelphia Eagles
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
0 |
7 |
0 | 10 | 17 |
Eagles |
7 |
7 |
14 | 0 | 28 |
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Week 7: at Cleveland Browns
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
0 |
3 |
3 | 7 | 13 |
Browns |
0 |
6 |
3 | 0 | 9 |
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Week 8: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Eagles |
0 |
0 |
0 | 7 | 7 |
Redskins |
0 |
7 |
7 | 3 | 17 |
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Week 9: vs. New Orleans Saints
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Saints |
7 |
7 |
0 | 0 | 14 |
Redskins |
3 |
7 |
0 | 0 | 10 |
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Week 10: at Pittsburgh Steelers
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
0 |
7 |
0 | 0 | 7 |
Steelers |
7 |
17 |
7 | 7 | 38 |
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Week 11: vs. St. Louis Cardinals
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Cardinals |
7 |
0 |
0 | 21 | 28 |
Redskins |
7 |
10 |
3 | 10 | 30 |
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Week 12: vs. Dallas Cowboys
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Cowboys |
0 |
3 |
3 | 14 | 20 |
Redskins |
7 |
7 |
10 | 10 | 34 |
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Week 13: at New York Giants
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Redskins |
0 |
3 |
3 | 0 | 6 |
Giants |
7 |
0 |
0 | 7 | 14 |
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Week 14: vs. Green Bay Packers
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Packers |
0 |
21 |
0 | 0 | 21 |
Redskins |
7 |
0 |
7 | 24 | 38 |
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This would prove the last time the Green Bay Packers would ever play at RFK Stadium before its closure in 1997: in fact, the Packers would not play an away game against the Redskins again until 2004.[5] This occurred because between 1978 and the admission of the Texans in 2002, non-division conference matchups had no rotation but were entirely based upon previous season’s standings.
Week 15: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
More information Quarter, Total ...
Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 | 4 | Total |
Bengals |
14 |
0 |
0 | 0 | 14 |
Redskins |
7 |
14 |
0 | 7 | 28 |
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Week 16: at Dallas Cowboys
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The loss knocked the Redskins out of the playoffs.
More information Team, Category ...
Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
Redskins |
Passing | Joe Theismann | 12/23, 200 Yds, TD |
Rushing | John Riggins | 22 Rush, 151 Yds, 2 TD |
Receiving | Benny Malone | 1 Rec, 55 Yds, TD |
Cowboys |
Passing | Roger Staubach | 24/42, 326 Yds, 3 TD, INT |
Rushing | Ron Springs | 20 Rush, 79 Yds, TD |
Receiving | Tony Hill | 8 Rec, 113 Yds, TD |
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More information Scoring summary, Quarter ...
Scoring summary |
Quarter |
Time |
Drive |
Team |
Scoring information |
Score |
Plays |
Yards |
TOP |
WAS |
DAL |
1 |
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Redskins |
24-yard field goal by Mark Moseley |
3 |
0 |
1 |
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Redskins |
Joe Theismann 1-yard touchdown run, Mark Moseley kick good |
10 |
0 |
2 |
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Redskins |
Benny Malone 55-yard touchdown reception from Joe Theismann, Mark Moseley kick good |
17 |
0 |
2 |
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Cowboys |
Ron Springs 1-yard touchdown run, Rafael Septien kick good |
17 |
7 |
2 |
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Cowboys |
Preston Pearson 26-yard touchdown reception from Roger Staubach, Rafael Septien kick good |
17 |
14 |
3 |
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Cowboys |
Robert Newhouse 2-yard touchdown run, Rafael Septien kick good |
17 |
21 |
4 |
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Redskins |
24-yard field goal by Mark Moseley |
20 |
21 |
4 |
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Redskins |
John Riggins 1-yard touchdown run, Mark Moseley kick good |
27 |
21 |
4 |
6:54 |
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Redskins |
John Riggins 66-yard touchdown run, Mark Moseley kick good |
34 |
21 |
4 |
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Cowboys |
Ron Springs 26-yard touchdown reception from Roger Staubach, Rafael Septien kick good |
34 |
28 |
4 |
0:39 |
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Cowboys |
Tony Hill 8-yard touchdown reception from Roger Staubach, Rafael Septien kick good |
34 |
35 |
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. |
34 |
35 |
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Standings
More information NFC East, W ...
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Washington Redskins 1979 Press Guide. pp. 2–21.