1969 Washington Redskins season

1969 Washington Redskins season
OwnerEdward Bennett Williams
PresidentEdward Bennett Williams
General managerVince Lombardi
Head coachVince Lombardi
Home stadiumRFK Stadium
Results
Record7–5–2
Division place2nd NFL Capitol
PlayoffsDid not qualify

The 1969 Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 38th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 33rd in Washington, D.C. In his only season with the franchise, the Redskins were led by head coach and general manager Vince Lombardi. The team improved on their 5–9 record from 1968 to finish at 7–5–2, their first winning season in 14 years. This was the final season to feature the lance logo on the helmet, and home games were played at RFK Stadium (formerly D.C. Stadium).

Offseason

During the week preceding Super Bowl III in January, rumors had circulated that Vince Lombardi had job offers from the Philadelphia Eagles, Boston Patriots, and Washington Redskins.[1] The night before the Super Bowl, Lombardi met with Redskins president Edward Bennett Williams for dinner at Tony Sweet's restaurant.[2] He agreed to coach the Redskins after Williams offered him complete authority over all personnel and football operations, the position of "Executive Vice President", and a 5% ownership stake.[3] Following the death of founding owner George Preston Marshall in August, Williams became the majority owner.

NFL draft

Main article: 1969 NFL draft
1969 Washington Redskins draft
Round Selection Player Position College
2 46 Eugene Epps Defensive back Texas-El Paso
3 62 Ed Cross Running back Pine Bluff
5 114 Bill Kishman Defensive back Colorado State
6 139 Harold McLinton Linebacker Southern
7 166 Jeff Anderson Running back Virginia
7 173 John Didion Center Oregon State
8 191 Larry Brown Running back Kansas State
11 269 Eric Norri Defensive tackle Notre Dame
12 295 Bob Shannon Defensive back Tennessee State
13 322 Michael Shook Defensive back North Texas
14 347 Rick Brand Defensive tackle Virginia
15 374 Paul Rogers Tackle Virginia
16 399 Mike Washington Linebacker Southern
17 426 Rich Dobbert Defensive end Springfield (Massachusetts)

Vince Lombardi

After stepping down as head coach of the Packers following the 1967 NFL season, a restless Lombardi returned to coaching in 1969 with the Washington Redskins, where he broke a string of 14 losing seasons. The 'Skins would finish with a record of 7–5–2, significant for a number of reasons. Lombardi discovered that rookie running back Larry Brown was deaf in one ear, something that had escaped his parents, schoolteachers, and previous coaches. Lombardi had observed Brown's habit of tilting his head in one direction when listening to signals being called, and walked behind him during drills and said "Larry." When Brown did not answer, the coach asked him to take a hearing exam. Brown was fitted with a hearing aid, and with this correction he would enjoy a successful NFL career.

Lombardi was the first coach to get soft-bellied quarterback Sonny Jurgensen, one of the league's premier forward passers, to get into the best condition he could. He coaxed former All-Pro linebacker Sam Huff out of retirement. He even changed the team's uniform design to reflect that of the Packers, with gold and white trim along the jersey biceps, and later a gold helmet. The foundation Lombardi laid was the groundwork for Washington's early 1970s success under former Los Angeles Rams Coach George Allen. Lombardi had brought a winning attitude to the Nation's Capital, in the same year that the nearby University of Maryland had hired "Lefty" Driesell to coach basketball and the hapless Washington Senators named Ted Williams as manager. It marked a renaissance in sports interest in the Nation's capitol.

Lombardi lasted only one season with the Redskins; he was diagnosed with terminal cancer after the 1969 season and died shortly before the 1970 regular season was to start.

Roster

1969 Washington Redskins roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

Reserve

× Taxi Squad only
Rookies in italics

Preseason

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 August 2 Chicago Bears W 13–7 1–0 RFK Stadium 45,988
2 August 8 at Buffalo Bills (AFL) L 17–21 1–1 War Memorial Stadium 37,012
3 August 23 at Atlanta Falcons W 24–7 2–1 Atlanta Stadium 56,990
4 August 30 vs. Detroit Lions L 20–21 2–2 Tampa Stadium (Tampa, FL) 42,477
5 September 6 Cleveland Browns L 10–20 2–3 RFK Stadium 45,994
6 September 14 at Philadelphia Eagles L 17–26 2–4 Franklin Field 35,417

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 21 at New Orleans Saints W 26–20 1–0 Tulane Stadium 73,147 Recap
2 September 28 at Cleveland Browns L 23–27 1–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 82,581 Recap
3 October 5 at San Francisco 49ers T 17–17 1–1–1 Kezar Stadium 35,642 Recap
4 October 12 St. Louis Cardinals W 33–17 2–1–1 RFK Stadium 50,481 Recap
5 October 19 New York Giants W 20–14 3–1–1 RFK Stadium 50,352 Recap
6 October 26 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 14–7 4–1–1 Pitt Stadium 46,557 Recap
7 November 2 at Baltimore Colts L 17–41 4–2–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 Recap
8 November 9 Philadelphia Eagles T 28–28 4–2–2 RFK Stadium 50,502 Recap
9 November 16 Dallas Cowboys L 28–41 4–3–2 RFK Stadium 50,474 Recap
10 November 23 Atlanta Falcons W 27–20 5–3–2 RFK Stadium 50,345 Recap
11 November 30 Los Angeles Rams L 13–24 5–4–2 RFK Stadium 50,352 Recap
12 December 7 at Philadelphia Eagles W 34–29 6–4–2 Franklin Field 60,658 Recap
13 December 14 New Orleans Saints W 17–14 7–4–2 RFK Stadium 50,354 Recap
14 December 21 at Dallas Cowboys L 10–20 7–5–2 Cotton Bowl 56,924 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Season summary

Week 9 vs Cowboys

Week Nine: Dallas Cowboys (7–1) at Washington Redskins (4–2–2)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 17 10 7741
Redskins 7 14 7028

at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C.

  • Date: November 16, 1969
  • Game weather: 33 °F (1 °C)
  • Game attendance: 50,474
  • Box Score
Game information

Week 12

Team 1 234Total
• Redskins 7 6147 34
Eagles 7 9310 29
  • Date: December 7
  • Location: Franklin Field
  • Game attendance: 60,658
  • Game weather: Sleet; 32 °F (0 °C); wind 10 mph
Scoring summary
Q1PHIKeyes 2 yard run (Baker kick)PHI 7–0
Q1WSHTaylor 12 yard pass from Jurgensen (Knight kick)Tie 7–7
Q2PHIJackson 29 yard pass from Snead (Baker kick)PHI 14–7
Q2PHISafety, Jurgensen tackled in end zone by TomPHI 16–7
Q2WSHKnight 12 yard field goalPHI 16–10
Q2WSHKnight 43 yard field goalPHI 16–13
Q3PHIBaker 47 yard field goalPHI 19–13
Q3WSHHoffman recovered fumble in end zone (Knight kick)WSH 20–19
Q3WSHSmith 25 yard pass from Jurgensen (Knight kick)WSH 27–19
Q4PHIBaker 19 yard field goalWSH 27–22
Q4WSHBrown 1 yard run (Knight kick)WSH 34–22
Q4PHIJackson 10 yard pass from Snead (Baker kick)WSH 34–29

[4]

Standings

NFL Capitol
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Dallas Cowboys 11 2 1 .846 6–0 9–1 369 223 W3
7 5 2 .583 3–2–1 6–3–1 307 319 L1
New Orleans Saints 5 9 0 .357 1–5 4–6 311 393 W1
Philadelphia Eagles 4 9 1 .308 1–4–1 4–5–1 279 377 L4

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

References

  1. ^ When Pride Still Mattered, David Maraniss,p. 452, Simon & Schuster, 1999, ISBN 978-0-684-84418-3
  2. ^ When Pride Still Mattered, David Maraniss,p. 453, Simon & Schuster, 1999, ISBN 978-0-684-84418-3
  3. ^ When Pride Still Mattered, David Maraniss,p. 457, Simon & Schuster, 1999, ISBN 978-0-684-84418-3
  4. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-Dec-17.
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