Dallas Cowboys History: 1983 Season

The Dallas Cowboys completed the 1983 season with a record of 12 wins and four losses, finishing second in the NFC East. The team started the season with seven straight victories, including a memorable Monday night win over the Washington Redskins in which the team erased a 20 point halftime deficit and prevailed, 31–30. The Cowboys were particularly strong on offense, led by quarterback Danny White and running back Tony Dorsett. The Cowboys scored a team record 479 points and staged a few come-from-behind victories during the season. However, the defense gave up many points, despite strong play from Randy White, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, and Everson Walls. In particular, the young secondary was guilty of giving up many big plays throughout the season.

Late in the season, the Cowboys met the Redskins at Texas Stadium with the NFC East crown up for grabs. Both teams entered the game with 12–2 records, but the defending champion Redskins proved too much for the Cowboys and emerged with a 31–10 victory, giving them the NFC East title. After a 42–17 drubbing at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers the following week, the Cowboys faced the Los Angeles Rams in the wild card game of the NFC playoffs. Despite having the home field advantage, the Cowboys fell, 24–17.

During the Redskins loss with the score 14–10 in the third quarter, the Cowboys failed on a fourth and one at midfield. The play was a key turning point. There appeared to be a miscommunication between quarterback Danny White and Tom Landry as to whether to run the play. The failed play led to a rare emotional outburst from Landry as he yelled "No, Danny, no."

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Game site	NFL recap	Attendance
1	September 5, 1983	at Washington Redskins	W 31–30	RFK Stadium	[1]	55,045
2	September 11, 1983	at St. Louis Cardinals	W 34–17	Busch Memorial Stadium	[2]	48,532
3	September 18, 1983	New York Giants	W 28–13	Texas Stadium	[3]	62,347
4	September 25, 1983	New Orleans Saints	W 21–20	Texas Stadium	[4]	62,136
5	October 2, 1983	at Minnesota Vikings	W 37–24	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	[5]	60,774
6	October 9, 1983	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 27–24 OT	Texas Stadium	[6]	63,308
7	October 16, 1983	Philadelphia Eagles	W 37–7	Texas Stadium	[7]	63,070
8	October 23, 1983	Los Angeles Raiders	L 38–40	Texas Stadium	[8]	64,991
9	October 30, 1983	at New York Giants	W 38–20	Giants Stadium	[9]	76,142
10	November 6, 1983	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 27–20	Veterans Stadium	[10]	71,236
11	November 13, 1983	at San Diego Chargers	L 23–24	Jack Murphy Stadium	[11]	46,192
12	November 20, 1983	Kansas City Chiefs	W 41–21	Texas Stadium	[12]	64,103
13	November 24, 1983	St. Louis Cardinals	W 35–17	Texas Stadium	[13]	60,974
14	December 4, 1983	at Seattle Seahawks	W 35–10	Kingdome	[14]	63,352
15	December 11, 1983	Washington Redskins	L 10–31	Texas Stadium	[15]	65,074
16	December 19, 1983	at San Francisco 49ers	L 17–42	Candlestick Park	[16]	59,957