1996 Washington Redskins season

The 1996 season was the Washington Redskins' 65th in the National Football League, and their 61st since the franchise moved to Washington, D.C. It was their last season playing at RFK Stadium, where they had played since 1961. They began the season aiming to improve on their 6–10 record from the year before, but after winning seven of their first eight games, they managed just two victories in the second half of the season and finished with a 9–7 record. By virtue of their inferior intra-conference record (6–6) compared to the Minnesota Vikings (8–4), the Redskins became the first team in NFL history to start the season 7–1 and not make the playoffs (this was later matched by the 2012 Chicago Bears).[1]

1996 Washington Redskins season
OwnerJack Kent Cooke
General managerCharley Casserly
PresidentJohn Kent Cooke
Head coachNorv Turner
Offensive coordinatorNorv Turner
Defensive coordinatorRon Lynn
Home fieldRFK Stadium
Results
Record9–7
Division place3rd NFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersQB Gus Frerotte

Although the Redskins' offense was eighth in the league in scoring, their defense surrendered 2,275 rushing yards, the most in the NFL that year.[2] Statistics site Football Outsiders calculated that the team had the worst run defense they had ever tracked.[3] At the end of the season, in a 37–10 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, past and present Redskins greats were honored at halftime.[4]

Offseason

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NFL draft

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1996 Washington Redskins draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 30 Andre Johnson  Offensive tackle Penn State
4 102 Stephen Davis *  Running back Auburn
5 138 Leomont Evans  Safety Clemson
6 174 Kelvin Kinney  Defensive end Virginia State
7 215 Jeremy Asher  Linebacker Oregon
7 250 DeAndre Maxwell  Wide receiver San Diego State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[5]

Personnel

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Staff

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1996 Washington Redskins staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches
  • Defensive Coordinator – Ron Lynn
  • Defensive Line – Bob Karmelowicz
  • Linebackers – Mike Haluchak
  • Defensive Backs – Tom Hayes
  • Assistant Secondary – Ray Horton

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength – Dan Riley
  • Conditioning Director – Jason Arapoff


Roster

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1996 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

Practice squad

Reserve


Rookies in italics

Regular season

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 1 Philadelphia Eagles L 14–17 0–1 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 53,415
2 September 8 Chicago Bears W 10–3 1–1 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 52,711
3 September 15 at New York Giants W 31–10 2–1 Giants Stadium 71,693
4 September 22 at St. Louis Rams W 17–10 3–1 Trans World Dome 62,303
5 September 29 New York Jets W 31–16 4–1 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 52,068
6 Bye
7 October 13 at New England Patriots W 27–22 5–1 Foxboro Stadium 59,638
8 October 20 New York Giants W 31–21 6–1 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 52,684
9 October 27 Indianapolis Colts W 31–16 7–1 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 54,254
10 November 3 at Buffalo Bills L 38–13 7–2 Rich Stadium 78,002
11 November 10 Arizona Cardinals L 37–34 (OT) 7–3 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 51,929
12 November 17 at Philadelphia Eagles W 26–21 8–3 Veterans Stadium 66,834
13 November 24 San Francisco 49ers L 19–16 8–4 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 54,235
14 November 28 at Dallas Cowboys L 21–10 8–5 Texas Stadium 64,955
15 December 8 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 24–10 8–6 Houlihan's Stadium 44,733
16 December 15 at Arizona Cardinals L 27–26 8–7 Sun Devil Stadium 34,260
17 December 22 Dallas Cowboys W 37–10 9–7 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 56,454

Standings

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NFC East
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(3) Dallas Cowboys 10 6 0 .625 286 250 L1
(5) Philadelphia Eagles 0 15 1 .625 363 341 L13
Washington Redskins 9 7 0 .563 364 312 W1
Arizona Cardinals 7 9 0 .438 300 397 L1
New York Giants 16 0 0 .375 242 297 W16

Awards and records

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References

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  1. ^ Trister, Noah (December 30, 2012). "Bears miss playoffs despite 26–24 win over Lions". Boston.com. Retrieved December 30, 2012.
  2. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1996 NFL Opposition & Defensive Statistics
  3. ^ Football Outsiders – DVOA 7.0: Worst Teams Ever, 1991–2011.
  4. ^ 1996 FOX broadcast of Dallas at Washington
  5. ^ "1996 Washington Redskins Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 28, 2014.