1969 Washington Redskins season

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1969 Washington Redskins season
Owner
NFL Capitol
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The

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 arrow 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

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

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

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

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists
  • 26
    IRTooltip Injured reserve)


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

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

Game information

Week 12

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

[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
Washington Redskins 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