Countdown to Kickoff Celebrating Numbers From Our Past

[kleese]

Trying something a little different with my franchise history based threads…. gonna do a daily countdown leading up to the opener against the Chargers. Each day I’ll focus on a number significant to that day. Going to start with margin of victory and see how far I can get. 
 

So, here we go… 

 

27 days until we kickoff against the Chargers... 

 

Sunday, November 23rd, 1986:

 

Redskins 41, Cowboys 14 

(27 point victory) 

 

I will always maintain that the 1986 Redskins were the third best team of my lifetime (born in 1977). I would rank this team AHEAD of two teams that WON the Super Bowl (1982, 1987) and behind only the 1991 and 1983 teams. 
 

We were awesome in 1986. Jay Schroeder had one of the best seasons at QB in team history— an oft forgotten season of brilliance. Unfortunately the Giants were in our way in 86 and we just couldn’t quite figure them out. I actually believe we were the second best team in the league in 1986 and we would have beaten the Broncos (or the Browns) in the SB. Alas, NYG weren’t going to be stopped that year. 
 

Heading into this game at RFK, we sat at 9-2 while Dallas entered at 7-4. We started the season 5-0, but got absolutely drilled in Dallas week 6, losing 30-6. In week 12, we had a chance to avenge that defeat and essentially end any hopes for Dallas of catching us in the standings. 
 

Back in the old days, the late games didn’t have the staggered start times. Not 4:05 or 4:25 kickoffs. All of the late games were 4:00 sharp. I grew up in Tulsa and the Cowboys were our” home” team, which meant we got them on TV every week. This was before the days of Sunday Ticket of course so you were dependent on your local carriers only. Luckily, because interest in the NFCE was high where I lived and because we were always so good, a decent number of our games were on local TV throughout the 80’s. But those firm 3:00 kickoffs sometimes bit you because they would almost always stay with the early game until it ended. On this day, I do not recall what the early game was, but I distinctly remember that CBS got to our game well after it started. One reason I remember this is because right as the game switched over, Clint Didier caught a long TD pass from Schroeder down the sideline to put us up 14-0. It may have even cut in during that play in progress. I can see it like yesterday, so excited the game finally switched over and there goes Didier for the TD. Also gotta remember no score bug back then, so it wasn’t until after the PAT that I realized it was already 14-0. 
 

Things got better from there. Gary Clark had a huge day and Schroeder made the most of his 16 completions— totaling 325 yards. It was 34-0 at the half. Dallas made no real push in the second half and we took the air out of the ball and won easily, 41-14. 
 

I don’t recall if that game officially clinched a playoff berth for us, but I do remember that after that win, I knew we were in and I knew we were a threat. I was also just 9 years old and I thought we were going to win every game and win the SB every year. But even in hindsight, I believe the 1986 team/season is criminally under appreciated by the fanbase. That game at RFK, late afternoon, under the lights, dominating Dallas… a highlight of a season full of them. 
 

 

 

 

 

[Cooleyfan1993]

Isn’t it 28 days actually? Today to Sunday September 12th is 4 Sunday’s away, which equals 28 days. Tomorrow will be 27 days 

[kleese]

8 minutes ago, Cooleyfan1993 said:

Isn’t it 28 days actually? Today to Sunday September 12th is 4 Sunday’s away, which equals 28 days. Tomorrow will be 27 days 

That’s one of those weird things where it depends on how you count it. I generally don’t count the day it lands on. So the day before is the final day.. how many full days until kickoff… I don’t count the kickoff day. Guess it just depends on how you interpret. 

[hail2skins]

Good trip down memory lane.  I was in college in PA during the 86 season, and don't remember watching many of the games that season. I remember seeing a highlight clip from the Raiders game, watching the MNF loss to the Giants (which happened on the same night as game 7 of the WS), probably seeing the end of the thrilling OT win over the Vikings, watching the end of the MNF win over the 49ers, and going in person to the home game against the Giants, which was my first ever regular season game at RFK.  Then watched the playoff win against the Rams before heading on an overseas trip over winter break. I did not think we had a chance against the Bears, and was elated when a classmate called back home and informed us of the score of the game. That elation turned to deflation when he then announced the score of the Giants-49ers game.  I flew back from the trip the day before the NFCCG and I don't know if it was just because I was happy to be home from freezing Europe, but I had zero expectations heading into that one. 

[kleese]

26 Days until kickoff vs the Chargers….

 

Let’s take a look at a 26 point victory that took place on Halloween Day, 1999. 
 

Redskins 48, Bears 22

(26 point victory) 

 

Yesterday we looked at one of the more underrated teams in franchise history (1986); today we visit the opposite- the overrated 1999 team. 
 

1999 started with a bang… the heartbreaking opening day loss to Dallas didn’t erase now explosive our offense was that day. As a matter of fact, through four games to start the season we were averaging over 37 points per game. Brad Johnson was on fire and we looked unstoppable offensively. 
 

Seems many forget that over the second half of the season, we cooled considerably, as did our QB. We also went 10-6 without beating any teams above .500 until week 17 in a meaningless game against the Dolphins. 1999 saw TWO 8-8 teams make the playoffs in the NFC— it was a down year and every time we had a chance to really make a move and earn home field and/or a bye in the playoffs, we failed to get the job done. 
 

That said, the offense was still rolling on Halloween… and things certainly didn’t slow down that day. 
 

Bright sunny early afternoon kickoff at FedEx. 1999 was also my first year with Sunday Ticket. I was in my senior year (my first senior year I should say) at OU in Norman, living off campus in a rent house with two good friends. 1999 was such a great year for me personally. I’m also a big Reds fan and it was a magical summer in Cincinnati. I’d also met my future wife in Feb and by October we were an item for

sure. Very few stresses, almost no responsibility, living in a place I loved with good friends all in the same boat. It was glorious. Despite my take that the 1999 team was overrated, I certainly ENJOYED that team and that season. 
 

The game itself was over quickly. The most memorable highlight was Big Daddy Wilkinson taking an INT 88 yards to the house. Darrell Green ran him down at about the 50 and escorted him unscathed to the end zone. It was one of four INTs on the day for the Bears QBs. 
 

Stephen Davis only carried the ball times, but still went for 142 yards. 
 

It was 31-0 at the half and 45-0 midway through the third. I recall being mildly annoyed that Cade McNown came in for the Bears and led them to three late TD drives. Also remember thinking McNown was gonna be really good. Oops. 
 

The win moved us to 5-2 on the year and it looked like we had a special season on our hands. 
 

 

[hail2skins]

Ed, I thought your 26 was going to be Super Bowl 26, which is now unfortunately 30 seasons ago!

 

The Chicago game you mention produced one of those random fan memories for me. That season was the first that I was in the club level at FedEx (was it even called FedEx then?). As you said, the game was a blowout, and as Chicago pulled their starting QB, at some point Norv decided to call off the dogs and sat Brad and brought in Rodney Peete. The guy sitting next to me was legitimately upset that they had taken Johnson out of the game. I tried explaining to him that it was done to prevent injury to our starter, but nope, he wasn't having it at all....I thought this guy was going to stroke out!  Just sheer idiocy.

[London Kev]

Thanks for doing this @kleese they're very entertaining. One question though; how do you remember so many details? Do you just recall these from memory? refer to a dairy? or do you re-watch the game and that jogs your memory?

 

Although I watched this game at the time, my recollection is hazy to say the least, and my memory of life events surrounding it are virtually non-existent (I suppose that the alcohol and weed I consumed in my youth can be blamed to some extent).

 

Sorry if I've asked you this question before, only my memory's not that good 🙂.

Edited August 17, 2021 by London Kev

[kleese]

4 hours ago, London Kev said:

Thanks for doing this @kleese they're very entertaining. One question though; how do you remember so many details? Do you just recall these from memory? refer to a dairy? or do you re-watch the game and that jogs your memory?

 

Although I watched this game at the time, my recollection is hazy to say the least, and my memory of life events surrounding it are virtually non-existent (I suppose that the alcohol and weed I consumed in my youth can be blamed to some extent).

 

Sorry if I've asked you this question before, only my memory's not that good 🙂.

I have very little to offer this world… one thing I can offer is a steel trap-like memory for things that don’t matter  My wife will confirm this. 
 

For whatever reason, I’ve always been able to recall details from things that mattered to me. I’m able to remember where I was, what I was doing, who I was with, etc… when it comes to the vast majority of sporting events I’ve cared about over the years. It’s the same with pop culture- movies, music, TV shows… I am good at remembering what year something came out, order of sequence, etc. 

 

Now, this does NOT extend to a Rain Man-like recall of math or numbers or anything like that at all. Again, it’s really just nonsense that I remember. 
 

So, for the most part I do this from memory. I then use Pro Football Reference to hammer down the details. For example, in the Bears example above, I absolutely remembered the game, the final score, where I was… I remembered the Big Daddy TD happened early in the game. I did NOT remember it was exactly 88 yards— so I got that detail from PFR. 
 

I am also less sharp the more RECENTLY it happened, which is weird. I can EASILY rattle off every Super Bowl match up, winner, MVP for the first 35 or so Super Bowls. Almost zero hesitation if you give me the year, I can tell you all the info. For the last 20 years, I have to work much harder to pull it. I’ll get there without cheating, but I will need to dig down to get it and it’s not on the top of my mind like the older games. 
 

If you say, 1979… the Steelers beating the Rams immediately comes into my mind with John Stallworth smoking the Rams (I was two years old at the time so obviously I’m remembering NFL Films). If you say 2016, I hesitate. I’ll ask myself, wait, was that the Patriots or Eagles or was it the Falcons choke? It will take me a minute before I land on the right one after I go through it in my head. 

[kleese]

25 days until we kickoff against the Chargers…

 

Today we go back to December 9th, 1990 in Foxboro.

 

Redskins 25, Patriots 10

 

This may be the worst weather game we’ve ever played. It rained the entirety of the game, and it rained HARD. It was also cold and windy as you’d imagine it would be on a rainy day in Boston in December. 
 

This was also back when the NFL would have 1-2 Saturday games once the college slate ended. This one was a 3:00 kickoff. 
 

It might be hard to imagine, but there was a time when the Patriots were BAD. Like, REALLY bad. The 1990 Patriots entered this game at 1-12. Terrible team. So, terrible team and absolutely horrendous weather conditions led to perhaps the most sparsely attended NFL game I can ever recall. Place was empty. 
 

This was also back in the days of real AstroTurf… so when it got wet, it was like an ice rink. 
 

For the Redskins, clinching a playoff berth was on the line— they’d missed the playoffs in 1988 and 1989– back then, that felt like forever. So I remember being excited to hopefully see us get back— The game itself felt like a formality, but you never know with a weather game like that what might happen.

 

Well, what happened was we took a 9-0 lead before we even took one snap on offense. Kurt Gouveia ran back a fumble for a TD and then we got a safety when the Pats snapped the ball out of the end zone. This was all less than 3:00 minutes into the game. Honestly, we basically tried to run out the clock for the remaining 57:00 minutes. 
 

Rypien completed FIVE passes on the day. Three to Sanders and two to Monk. That was it. Byner carried the ball 39 times. No one else had more than 2 carries. 
 

We took a 19-0 lead into Halftime. Patriots finally got on the board in the third, but never truly threatened. The second half was a boring slog, just bleeding the clock down. Final 25-10. Watched the game at home and was able

to rest easy after our clinching win. Earlier that day, the Giants lost in Buffalo (SB preview) in a great game. We knew it was wild card time

for us from there on out. 
 

A mundane, boring, methodical victory… 31 years ago, but due to the slip n slide conditions, it’s a game I’ve always remembered well. 

[kleese]

24 days until we kickoff against the Chargers…

 

Going super random on this one… 

 

November 23rd, 2003

 

Sunday Night Football at Miami 

 

Dolphins 24, Redskins 23 

 

First of all, it should be noted that this was right before the league changed the MO in relation to Sunday and Monday Night Football. In 2003, SNF was still generally mid-card level games while MNF got the more marquee match-ups. It shifted shortly after. 
 

I chose this game because this loss always bothered me to an odd level. It was year two of Spurrier. We were 4-6 entering the game. The Dolphins were 6-4. There was no real reason to be excited about this, but I do remember thinking it was our “desperation” game that season. If we won, we would have kept some playoff hopes alive. A loss and we were more or less toast. Even though I’d pretty much lost faith in Spurrier at that point already, I imagine I was still hopeful that a great finish to the season might validate his hiring (I was big fan of the hire when it went down). 
 

We played really well that night for three and a half quarters— or we are least didn’t screw it up for the first three and a half quarters. Tim Hasslebeck took the majority of the snaps that night. He was NOT good at all, but this was the one game I recall that he actually made some plays. 
 

After giving up a long TD early we went on a 20-0 run and wound up leading 20-10 at the half. Brian Griese was helping us out by having a terrible game for the Dolphins. 
 

In the third quarter, we put a drive together, but couldn’t punch it in from about the 5. We settled for a FG and entered the fourth leading 23-10. I remember thinking, “we are probably gonna lose this game 24-23.” Failure to punch that last drive into the end zone was inevitably going to cost us. 

Dolphins pulled Griese in favor of Jay Fiedler and he gave Miami just enough boost to start moving the ball. We had bottled up Ricky Williams pretty good all night, but he started getting going in the fourth. He scored a TD to make it 23-17 and that’s when it really started feeling shaky. 
 

After failing on another drive, Williams broke lose for a 24 yard TD run and Miami took the one point lead. I honestly do not recall the last 4:00 of that game or if we had any real chance to get down for the go-ahead score. Feel like if anything really significant happened I would

have remembered. 
 

What I do remember is shutting off the TV that night and feeling pretty depressed about the game and where we were as a franchise overall. No progress made from 2002. Another lost season and it looked like Spurrier was in over his head/out of his element. I just recall being very bummed over that loss and frustrated that they couldn’t even give me one semi nice win the week of Thanksgiving to at least keep things interesting. Obviously when you look at those rosters it’s probably a mini miracle we even had four wins— maybe Spurrier was actually a decent coach and just a horrid talent evaluator? 
 

But for whatever reason, when I think “24” that mundane, relatively meaningless mid-season game in a lost year in Miami comes to mind. 

 

 

 

[hail2skins]

The initial description of a Sunday night game against the Dolphins made me immediately think of the 1987 contest. Very much remember being in the DC area and watching with a friend in the Tysons area. Didn't remember much in the way of specifics, but could remember a long FG attempt at the end, and sure enough:

 

 

As for 2003, after the fast start and then going to Philly to see them lose a close one in the shiny Linc and then back to FedEx to get obliterated by the Bucs, I basically remember nothing else about that season.

[kleese]

16 hours ago, hail2skins said:

The initial description of a Sunday night game against the Dolphins made me immediately think of the 1987 contest. Very much remember being in the DC area and watching with a friend in the Tysons area. Didn't remember much in the way of specifics, but could remember a long FG attempt at the end, and sure enough:

 

 

As for 2003, after the fast start and then going to Philly to see them lose a close one in the shiny Linc and then back to FedEx to get obliterated by the Bucs, I basically remember nothing else about that season.

The 1987 game at Miami is a blind spot for me. Almost zero recollection which is really odd because it was a National TV game and back then that was always a big deal for me living out of market. Nice find!

[kleese]

23 days until we kickoff against the Chargers 

 

Today we dial it back to the glorious 1991 season— when I hear the #23 only one score comes to mind…

 

Monday, September 30th at RFK 

 

Redskins 23, Eagles 0 

 

Before I dive into it, there is an important note. Randall Cunningham tore his ACL against the Packers week one. Philly defense is 91 was phenomenal. A dominant unit. But they had NOTHING behind Randall and his injury cost them big time that year. As a matter of fact, had he been healthy, I think the likely would have been the second best team in the NFC that year. 
 

We came into the game 4-0, having shutout our previous two home opponents. Eagles were  3-1 despite losing Randall. 
 

Such fond memories of 1991 and that time in my life. I had turned 14 a few weeks earlier. I was in 8th grade. Played nose guard on our school team. There was absolutely nothing in my way of being an obsessed fan. I went to school, played football, hung out with friends— weekends wide open and Sundays off limits. My had a rec room upstairs in the house I lived in at the time. I had a small TV in the room, video games, etc. I was so content in that small space. Normally, I watched the games on the “big” TV downstairs, but would occasionally be banished to the upstairs TV if my Mom or Dad wanted to watch something else. I often wound up watching the night games up there. 
 

That was the case on this night.. watched solo in the rec room.  Jim McMahon started at QB for Philly, but didn’t last long. Pat Ryan came in and was a total disaster. What happened that night at RFK was always what I imagined what would happen if an NFL defense faced a college offense. It wasn’t just domination. It was shocking. The Eagles tallied a grand total of 89 yards of offense for the night. I’m pretty sure a decent amount of those yards came in the fourth quarter. They had net 35 yards passing with three INTs. 4 total first downs. It was wild. 
 

Our offense was fine, but the Philly D had no chance with their offense being so inept. It wasn’t petty for us offensively, but we moved it enough. It was only 10-0 at half and 13-0 at the end of three, but I was never nervous. Eagles weren’t crossing the 50, much less scoring. 
 

I believe to this day it remains the most dominating defensive performance by the Redskins that I’ve ever seen. First three home games to start the season— 0 points given up. Remarkable. 

[kleese]

22 Days until we kickoff against the Chargers... 

 

Looking through our archives, we haven't scored exactly 22 points very often. As a matter of fact, while I may have missed one, I don't think we landed on exactly 22 points once between 1990-2005. Then, oddly enough we scored exactly 22 points three weeks IN A ROW in 2006. We lost at home to the Titans 25-22, then lost the next week on the road to the Colts 36-22. We were 2-5 and things were looking bleak in terms of building off our 10-win 2005 wild card winning season. 

 

November 5th, 2006 

 

Redskins 22, Cowboys 19 

 

Alright, before I go much further, I'll be honest and say I'm gonna probably rain on some parades here. I've seen this game in some fans' all-time Top 10 list. Yikes. This one probably isn't even Top 30 for me. I find it to be an overrated game/moment in our history. Had a fun/improbable ending but it didn't mean much when we won it, and we followed it up the very next week by getting drubbed in Philly, 27-3. So, in terms of greatest moments in franchise history? Nah, this one doesn't do it for me. 

 

But it WAS certainly memorable and I did get very excited when it actually happened. This was pre-kids for me-- still about three years until the first came around, but I had been married for over 5 years at this point. We had recently moved to OKC from Tulsa and I started my own business. In what I thought was a pretty brilliant move, I installed DirecTV at my in-laws house instead of at our house. Figured I'd make watching the games at the in-laws the new tradition. My in laws are awesome and my father in law is a football fan (Cowboys if you can believe that) so it was a good example of killing multiple birds with one stone-- I mean, how mad can you get at me for watching football all day if I'm doing it at your parents house? The dish "lived" there for over a decade before we moved a bit farther out into the burbs in 2017. It was a fun routine in those years. My father in law always got a kick out of my antics. 

 

I actually don't remember a ton about the game other than it was kind of weird, with strange scores throughout. At one point it was 5-0, then 6-5, then 9-5, and then 12-12 at the half. Kinda sloppy, but a pretty entertaining/intense game. I do remember my heart sinking when it appeared clear that Romo had gotten the Boys into fairly easy FG range. Feel like in our history, we haven't blocked many meaningful FGs so I wasn't even really thinking that, just hoping he shanked it. Of course, we got the block, and I initially shot up thinking ST21 was going to take it to the house. I was legit standing and yelling during that moment. Then, in the chaos of the play, I got a bit confused myself and initially thought the flag would be on us-- I knew it was after the block, so I assumed OT. But then it dawned on me that they grabbed his facemask and it should be 15 and one untimed down. Remember thinking what a wild swing that was... and also not having a ton of faith in Nick Novak making a 47 yarder. Of course he did and that was one of those jubilant moments of relief-- just so happy we didn't lose at the buzzer. And sure, at the time, I was certainly still hopeful we could turn the season around. It gave us life for a week-- which again, was short lived. 

 

So while I think this moment has been a bit over-sold over the years, I still think it's a worthy note for the number 22. 

[kleese]

I missed a day, but depending on your math, it actually might just get me back on the right track. It’s exactly 3 weeks until kickoff, so I’ll roll with it…

 

21 days until we kickoff against the Chargers

 

Today we go back to one of the more enjoyable seasons of the past 30 years, and to what I think was perhaps our only team since 1992 that REALLY had a chance to go to the Super Bowl (I think 2012 team would have had RG3 not gotten hurt)— and that is the 2005 team. 
 

To commemorate 21 though, I am actually choosing a loss from that season— in large part because I was there 

 

October 16, 2005

 

Chiefs 28, Redskins 21

 

This was a truly fantastic game— perhaps the most well played game I’ve ever attended. Certainly near the very top of the excitement scale as well. 
 

The night before OU played KU at Arrowhead and I attended that game with several family members. The next day it was just me and my father in law. Arrowhead is everything you’ve ever heard about— an unreal tailgate and pre game scene. It’s phenomenal. The stadium itself is nondescript, but the the atmosphere is top notch. It was a perfect, beautiful fall day. I can age this game by reporting that I had to walk ALL the way back to our car once we reached the gate because I had a camera that they didn’t allow inside. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was a legit camera— with film and everything! Hard to believe just 16 years ago those were still in play. 
 

The game was back and forth all afternoon with highs and lows for both teams on both sides of the ball. Some big plays from both offenses, some big plays from both defenses… and ultimately one VERY painful and impactful turnover that I can still see clear as day. 
 

We had seats in end zone (I hate that view and no longer ever purchase end zone seats) but they were uppers so you could see plays unfold fairly well. One highlight was an 80 yard WR screen that Santana took to the house directly into our end zone. Man, I loved #89– perhaps my favorite player in the post Gibbs I era. That play tied the game at 14. 
 

Later in the quarter, still 14-14 we were driving again. Had a FG easily wrapped up and were possibly heading in for a TD when Rock Cartwright fumbled… chiefs scooped it and took it back 80 yards for the TD. The place went nuts and it felt like game over. To our credit, we came right back and tied it 21-21,  but sure would have been nice for that to put us UP seven. 
 

In the fourth quarter Priest Holmes got loose on a screen for another long TD. We had a few more chances, but a Brunell pass into the end zone fell short on the final play of the game. A 28-21 loss. A great game, and great day to be there; alas it ended as so many have over the past 30 years. 

[kleese]

Forgot about 20...oops, moving right along... 

 

19 days until we kickoff against the Chargers... 

 

Taking it back today to possibly the most misleading win in the history of fandom. 

 

September 6th, 1993 (RFK, MNF) 

 

Redskins 35, Cowboys 16

(19 point victory) 

 

First, a little personal background. I was a very happy kid living in Tulsa, OK. In the spring of 1993 my parents told me we were moving to Houston. This crushed me-- I was finishing up my freshmen year in HS, was totally content, and had no desire to move. When we arrived in Houston of May of that year, I had no friends and was still a few months short of getting my driver's license. Needless to say, it was a long, boring summer. I couldn't wait for football season to start to at least get that rhythm back. I was so naive as a fan back then and so spoiled-- I loved Gibbs, but also figured Petitbone would swoop right in and keep it going. I knew our roster was older, but I thought the 1993 team was going to contend for the Super Bowl-- I mean, it was almost a given to me. 

 

I was so pumped by the time that first Monday rolled out-- back then, the NFL started a week earlier than it does now, so this was a Labor Day game-- no school (which I REALLY hated at the time) and excited all day to get it going as I'd waited all summer for it. Watched the game, sitting on the floor of our living room. After an early Cowboys TD, we completely dominated the game. Sharpest memory is Brian Mitchell having a huge night-- Rypien played well too-- and he looked more like the 1991 Ryp than the hobbled 1992 version. Cowboys were without  Emmitt who was holding out-- for anyone that thinks Emmitt was just a product of their OL-- I suggest you go back to the first two games of the 1993 season-- both losses for Dallas (he eventually came back and they dominated and won the SB again). 

 

The game ended and I was certainly happy, but also sort of arrogant thinking that was kind of what I expected. Went to school the next day and spent the entire week thinking about how great a season it was going to be (enter record player scratching sound). 

 

Looking back, it's entirely possible that the week of Sept 6th 1993 was the last time I was truly ****y about the chances for this team. 

 

I could write a book about the next few weeks of the 1993 season and how demoralized I was by each loss and the slow realization that not only we were not going to the Super Bowl, but we really, really sucked. I was in denial most of that year. We were 1-6, beat the Colts, and I still thought we could go on a run (spoiler alert: we didn't). 

 

I was a kid back then so my fandom was still pretty "pure" and lacked any real cynicism. 1993 was really the first painful year of my fan experience-- glad no one told me I'd need to buckle up for the next three decades. But I do remember that night and being so excited-- maybe even a little validated that despite being in a spot I wasn't super happy with at the time, that the Redskins were still there for me-- and I guess in ways good and bad, that remains true to this day. 

[hail2skins]

Ed, because of the suck we've endured since then, our younger fans can't appreciate how stunning that fall off the cliff 1993 season was.

 

The other day you mentioned the 2006 Hand of God game where we scored 22 is probably one of the more overrated wins by our fans. I think one of the more underrated losses was a game we scored 19 in the 1984 dvisional playoff loss to the Bears, who scored 23. That season was during a freshman year in college which was difficult for me, and wasn't helped by the reigning back to back NFC champs getting smoked in the first two games of the season by the teams who would later play in the SB. However, the Skins came back strong and finished the year at 11-5. The divisional game was at RFK, and the Bears were supposed to be a speed bump for the Skins enroute to an NFCCG rematch, which would be at Candlestick. I watched the game at a relatives place in DC, the same place I had watched the 1982 NFCCG at. The Bears gained a lead and our late chances were snuffed out by the Bears D teeing off on Joey T.

 

In retrospect, seeing what the Bears did in 1985 and the fact that we exacted revenge at Soldier in 1986 and 1987 are mitigating factors. But at the time, realizing that we weren't going to make a 3rd straight SB appearance left me empty.

[kleese]

2 hours ago, hail2skins said:

Ed, because of the suck we've endured since then, our younger fans can't appreciate how stunning that fall off the cliff 1993 season was.

 

The other day you mentioned the 2006 Hand of God game where we scored 22 is probably one of the more overrated wins by our fans. I think one of the more underrated losses was a game we scored 19 in the 1984 dvisional playoff loss to the Bears, who scored 23. That season was during a freshman year in college which was difficult for me, and wasn't helped by the reigning back to back NFC champs getting smoked in the first two games of the season by the teams who would later play in the SB. However, the Skins came back strong and finished the year at 11-5. The divisional game was at RFK, and the Bears were supposed to be a speed bump for the Skins enroute to an NFCCG rematch, which would be at Candlestick. I watched the game at a relatives place in DC, the same place I had watched the 1982 NFCCG at. The Bears gained a lead and our late chances were snuffed out by the Bears D teeing off on Joey T.

 

In retrospect, seeing what the Bears did in 1985 and the fact that we exacted revenge at Soldier in 1986 and 1987 are mitigating factors. But at the time, realizing that we weren't going to make a 3rd straight SB appearance left me empty.

Only playoff loss at RFK we ever endured. Didn’t Sweetness THROW a TD in that game? The Bears destroyed us again in 1985 at Solider Field… and then basically ever since then, we’ve owned them— beginning with dashing their dynasty hopes in 1986/1987. 

[kleese]

18 days until we kickoff against the Chargers... 

 

When I hear 18, one score immediately comes to mind... 

 

September 26th, 2011 (MNF at Jerryworld) 

 

Cowboys 18, Redskins 16 

 

My first ever live Redskins game took place on MNF inside the old Star in Irving... 1987-- yep, a replacement game. I saw them play many more times over the years in Dallas-- more losses than wins, but some of the wins have been sweet. 

 

In 2011, I met up with a longtime friend of mine who lives down there and we attended this game. My hopes for the 2011 were tempered at best due to our QB situation, but we started the season 2-0 and our fourth game was against an iffy Rams team-- so I knew if we beat Dallas, a 4-0 start to the season was possible, if not likely-- and that would represent our only such start since 1991. So I was pretty pumped for this game, knowing we were capable of winning and beginning to wonder if maybe Shanny had something figured out. 

 

We had pretty decent seats in the lower level and were mostly surrounded by non-annoying Cowboys fans (as much as that is possible). Not exactly a beauty of a game, but it was tight. When it was all said and done, the teams combined to kick NINE FGs-- most of them of the shorter variety-- so neither team was having too much trouble moving the ball-- just lots of trouble punching it in. I felt decent throughout the game, but finally got REALLY hopeful when we cracked the end zone for the first time late in the third quarter to take a 16-9 lead. That's when it felt as if we went from having a CHANCE to win the game to odds being in our favor of winning the game. 

 

As the fourth quarter dragged along, it started feeling more and more like we'd blow it. The play I can still CLEARLY see in my head took place with about 2:20 to go in the game. We held a 16-15 lead, Dallas had 3rd and 21 from their own 30-ish yard line. I can't recall what their timeout situation was, but they were either going to have to punt and pray or they were going to have to go for it on fourth down. Obviously third and 21 on their end of field is an ideal spot for the defense-- or so you'd think. Romo dropped back and lofted one up for Dez-- it was coming our way. Decent coverage from DHall, but Dez made the catch and then Hall was flagged 15 more for facemask. And really, that was it. From sitting pretty at 3rd and 21 to already in FG range in one play. We did hold them to a FG and Dan Bailey made it 6-6 on the night giving Dallas an 18-16 lead. 

 

We still had a chance. We got the ball to about our own 45 with over 30 seconds left, first and 10. Alas, Rex was sacked on the next play, fumbled, game over. Romo takes a knee and that's that. 

 

After the fumble, I grumpily told my buddy to head for the exits so I could get out of there before the kneel-down. As we shuffled out, a female Cowboys fan kind of got in my grill and let out a holler-- I snapped right at her to "get out of my face!" Honestly, it was kind of an overreaction on my part, but I had some frustration to take out. Then, my buddy did the unthinkable-- he said he hat to hit the restroom real quick. Well, this defeated the purpose of getting out that extra minute or two early. And it left me waiting for him in the concourse as happy Cowboys fans streamed out, mocking me standing there along the way. 

 

We would indeed beat the Rams the next week to go to 3-1. After a bye, I actually attended our next game as well-- Philly at FedEx. My only true visit to the ES tailgate. We lost that day and then five more in a row after that, capped off with another close loss to Dallas (in OT) which effectively ended our 2011 season. But for two and 3/4 games, that season felt pretty good. 

[hail2skins]

Thanks for that bad memory. The four year Shanahan era in DC, even with RG3's magical rookie season, is arguably the most disappointing stint of the Snyder regime.

[kleese]

2 hours ago, hail2skins said:

Thanks for that bad memory. The four year Shanahan era in DC, even with RG3's magical rookie season, is arguably the most disappointing stint of the Snyder regime.

I was actually never super high on Shanny. I always got the impression he wasn’t really “all in” for whatever reason. For me, most disappointing was Spurrier— I really like him, liked the hire, and was happy we were the team to give him the shot he was inevitably going to get. Obviously, he probably defined not being “all in.” He just didn’t care enough. I still think he could have been a good coach in the NFL if he did. 

[kleese]

17 days until we kickoff against the Chargers…

 

17 is a pretty common number in the NFL… and for us, of course our first SB victory came in SB 17. And we’ve scored exactly 17 points in dozens and dozens of games over the years. But I’ll go a little deeper here…

 

October 21st, 2001 

 

Redskins 17, Panthers 14 

 

When it comes to improbable wins in team history, it’s hard to beat the Monday Night Miracle in Dallas in 2005. But in some ways, this 2001 game tops it. 
 

Not only did we start 2001 0-5, it was an especially UGLY 0-5. Got destroyed in 3 of the 5 games; were only moderately competitive in one of them, and then lost to the equally inept 0-4 Cowboys in one of the worst MNF games of all time. 
 

So we were 0-5 entering this one and looking absolutely hapless under Marty (although the defense had shown a few signs of life).

 

I was newly married.. about two and a half months in— living in our first place together (an apartment). For the first 4ish years of marriage I had a “sports room” in the apartment and then in our first house. It was decked out with some truly hideous furniture and lots of random memorabilia and random junk. Had two small TVs set up— so weird to look back now pre-kids, kind of still kids ourselves and how much TIME we had on our hands. I still make a habit of Sunday gameday rituals, but it takes a LOT more work now. Lots of planning ahead and getting things done in advance, etc. Back then,  breeze. 
 

So I was sitting there on our horrendous purple couch, just sort of lifeless as we made a mockery of offensive football that day. Panthers held a 7-0 lead headed to the 4th and took what I certainly felt was a commanding 14-0 lead early in the 4th. 
 

After we failed to the ball (again) we gave the ball back to the Panthers with about 10:00 left. They immediately got into FG range and it was totally lights out. Heck I imagine the only reason I kept watching was because I had nothing else to do. Then, the Lavar play. It was a simple swing pass to the RB— ball was just sort of lofted a bit much and Lavar read it well— snatched it and it was easy to the end zone from there. 
 

I didn’t actually get too excited when it happened. It was more like “oh hey, we are finally gonna score.” I certainly had no faith our offense would do anything. 
 

Well, we quickly got the ball back at our own 15. Then, in one play… 85 yard TD from Tony Banks to Rod Gardner. I DID get excited about that. I think it was more excitement that I finally had ANYTHING to cheer about. 
 

What was wild was that we got the ball back pretty quickly again and immediately started driving. Like the flip of the switch. Chunk plays coming easily. We then missed a short potential game winning FG. 
 

In OT, we got the ball first and picked up

right where we left off. 30 yard gain followed by another bomb to Gardner that was initially ruled a TD (he was touched at the 5). This time we made the FG and we improved to 1-5. I got really excited and jazzed up during those final possessions. I honestly think I was just so happy to finally have something to enjoy that season. 
 

Little did I know that the Lavar TD would be the spark that ignited a 5-0 run to offset our 0-5 start. 
 

I actually don’t remember 2001 quite as fondly as everyone else does. From 0-5 to 5-5 was great, but that 11th game was one of the worst losses we’ve suffered in the past 25+ years IMO. So when I think of 2001 my first thought is how we blew the entire hot streak by losing at home to a dreadful Cowboys team and then again at home to the Eagles. 
 

But without question, the improbable win over Carolina remains one of the strongest individual game memories for me. 
 

(Oh, and the sports room and purple couch are both long gone now BTW)

 

 

Edited August 27, 2021 by kleese

[kleese]

16 days until we kickoff against the Chargers…

 

This one was kind of easy… 

 

September 12th, 2004

 

Redskins 16, Bucs 10

 

Without question, my favorite day (or perhaps favorite 48 hour-ish period) in ES history had to have been those hours when the Gibbs return rumors started to swirl. The place was buzzing and it is perhaps the only instance in the history of this board where there was really 100% unity in terms of wanting the rumors to be true. It was so fun. 
 

When it became official, it’s perhaps the happiest I’ve been as a fan in the past 25+ years as a fan. I was euphoric. Saint Joe returns. You simply could not be from my generation of fandom and not adore Gibbs. We had endured almost 15 years of misery since he left at that point and I absolutely felt that our troubles were over. 
 

It’s funny, I remember that opening game quite well… or at least the day itself up until the Portis TD. I think my brain shut down after that. 
 

My wife and I had moved into our first house by then— still a few years away from kids and I still had my dedicated sports room. Bright sunny day both at FedEx and where we lived at the time in the suburbs of Tulsa. 
 

I was up early that day. Tons of nervous energy. Bouncing around the house, trying to find errands to run. My house sort of went along and sat in with me considering I’d been talking her ear off for months about the return of Gibbs. Man, I was a mess by kickoff. 
 

All I can say is that even though the Gibbs II era didn’t end quite the way I had hoped, the Portis play alone made it worth it to me. That play, that moment, felt so amazing. Right then, we WERE BACK! When he busted open, I shot off the couch and just went nuts. That was so fun, so wild. I probably go back at least once per year and watch it again on YouTube. 
 

As I said, I actually don’t remember much of the game after that, other than it got REALLY ugly and became a pretty good preview of what our season would become— stellar defensive efforts, brutally bad on offense. At that moment, I certainly didn’t care and wasn’t worried. Gibbs was back, we were 1-0, and I hadn’t felt that confident since he was there the first time. 
 

I try not to get too wrapped up in the ultimate results defining my experience as a fan. Even though 2004 wound up being a meh season, that first game still very much happened and very much mattered to me. I still remember it fondly and hope for more moments like that. 

 

[kleese]

15 days until we kickoff against the Chargers… 

 

Taking it back to one of my favorite Redskins seasons of all time, 1992. 
 

October 25th, 1992 

 

Redskins 15, Vikings 13 

 

I loved the 1992 team. In many ways I enjoyed the pursuit of winning a second SB more than the 1991 season. The 92 team was so beat up and the offense had taken such a fall from the previous season, but I still very much believed in that team. 
 

We were 4-2 heading into this game at The Metrodome, but 3 of our 4 wins to that point had been slugfests, including an ugly 16-12 win over Philly the week before. 
 

I had just turned 15, freshmen in HS. Had a buddy who was a year older and had his license. He also just so happened to be a Vikings fan. Back in those years, I would normally have my Mom drop me off at The Outback Sports Cafe off Skelly Drive in Tulsa and I’d chill there all day when we weren’t on local TV. I loved that place and was in heaven from the time I discovered it two years earlier. But considering my buddy could drive and he was a Vikings fan, it only made sense he’d pick me up that day. 
 

It’s so weird I remember this, but I specifically recall being paranoid he’d be late or forget or something. It was also daylight savings and I didn’t want him to forget to fall back— back in the days where you had to manually change your clocks. So I remember calling him and making sure he had all the details. 
 

He showed up right on time… this was one of those games that was really ugly on paper, but was actually pretty entertaining to watch. This will forever be the Chip Lohmiller game for me. He was so good in 91-92, and this was his crowning moment. He would kick five FGs that day, accounting for all of our points. He hit a 52 yarder and then a game winner from 49. Kickers weren’t as automatic back then, especially from distance so his accomplishments that day were noteworthy. 
 

Offense was hard to come by that day, but we scratched just enough on the final drive to get Chip in range. 
 

At the time, that was such a satisfying win for me and it’s stayed that way in my mind’s eye. I was really happy after that game… we’d gone from 2-2 to 5-2 and it felt like we were back on a championship track. 

[kleese]

14 days until we kickoff against the Chargers…

 

14 is pretty common number in football for obvious reasons. We’ve scored exactly 14 points in multiple games over the years. 
 

However, in my lifetime.. dating back to the 1977 season, we have only won FIVE games by scoring 14 points. Here is the list: 

October 27th, 1985 (Redskins 14, Browns 7): I do not have any direct recollection of this game. Game played in Cleveland. Feel like I’ve seen some footage of it over the years. Scored all 14 points in first quarter. Nice day from Riggins. Looks like Kosar with either injured or replaced… by Gary Danielson. 
 

November 17th, 1986 MNF (Redskins 14, 49ers 6): I DO remember this one, but my 1986 memories are weird— I had a VHS highlight tape of that season that watched ALL THE TIME. At some point my memories of that season merged with my memories of the video. So it’s hard for my discern. In the highlight video they pointed out it became “Tuesday morning football” at RFK as the game went longer than usual. Joe Montana had a very strange stat line— especially for mid 80s. He was 33-60, 441 yards, 0 TD, 3 INT. Rice had 204 yards receiving. Kinda nuts to do that and score 6 points. 
 

November 3rd, 2002 (Redskins 14, Seahawks 3): This was probably the game where my confidence in Spurrier peaked. We were really not too bad in 2002 through this point. We had beaten the Colts the week prior to go to 3-4; hitting the road and winning in Seattle fairly easily was pretty impressive. I remember being really happy/content with this win and where we stood midway through the season. It was in Seattle, so late afternoon game of course— I do remember Bruce Smith had a big game and our defense dominated. In hindsight Marvin Lewis was probably the one keeping us afloat that season. 
 

September 19th, 2005 MNF (Redskins 14, Cowboys 13): Anything interesting happen in this one? 😁

 

October 19th, 2008 (Redskins 14, Browns 11): The week before we lost at home to the Rams in a brutally painful game— I was there. That terrible loss prevented us from going 5-1 in Zorn’s first season. We continued sleepwalking the next week at FedEx against the Browns. This was an awful game. So ugly. One of those wins that felt as close to a loss as possible. 95% of the time I have my life set up to where I’m all in while the games are being played. But that day, we had family in from out of town and I was juggling some stuff, trying to get to a dinner (it was a late game). One of those deals where the game kept dragging, I kept looking at my watch, one foot out the door, etc. We came VERY close to blowing it at end, but Browns missed a FG that would have sent it to OT.