The 1983 Dallas Cowboys season was the franchise's 24th season in the National Football League. The Cowboys finished second in the

NFC East The National Football Conference – Eastern Division or NFC East is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It currently has four members: the Dallas Cowboys ...

and improving their 6-3 record from 1982. The team broke the record for consecutive playoff appearances with 9 (the 2010 Colts later tied the record).

Summary

The team started the season with seven straight victories, including a memorable Monday night win over the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

in which the team erased a 20-point halftime deficit and prevailed, 31–30. The Cowboys were particularly strong on offense, led by

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Danny White Wilford Daniel White (born February 9, 1952) is a former quarterback and punter for the Dallas Cowboys and an American football coach in the Arena Football League. He has been the color commentator for Cowboys games on Compass Media Networks' ...

and

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

Tony Dorsett Anthony Drew Dorsett Sr. (born April 7, 1954) is a former American football running back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos. From Western Pennsylvania, Dorsett attended the ...

. 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 Edward Lee Jones (born February 23, 1951), commonly known as Ed "Too Tall" Jones due to his height, is a former American football player who played 15 seasons (1974–1978, 1980–1989) in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys ...

, and

Everson Walls Everson Collins Walls (born December 28, 1959) is a former American football defensive back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Giants, and the Cleveland Browns. During his 14 se ...

. 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 Texas Stadium was an American football stadium located in Irving, Texas, a suburb west of Dallas. Opened on October 24, 1971, it was known for its distinctive hole in the roof, the result of abandoned plans to construct a retractable roof (Cowboy ...

with the

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. With the Cowboys trailing 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." After a 42–17 drubbing at the hands of the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

the following week, the Cowboys faced the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

in the wild card game of the NFC playoffs. Despite having the home field advantage, the Cowboys fell, 24–17.

NFL Draft

Undrafted free agents

Roster

Schedule

Division opponents are in bold text The October 16 and November 6 games against the Philadelphia Eagles were played with locations switched from the original schedule, because of October 16 conflict with game 5 of the baseball World Series.

Season summary

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

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Week 13

Week 14

Week 15

Week 16

Wild card playoffs

December 26, 1983

NFC: Los Angeles Rams 24, Dallas Cowboys 17

Standings

Playoffs

Awards

Five players represented the Cowboys in the 1984

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

Doug Cosbie Douglas Durant Cosbie (born March 27, 1956) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Santa Clara University. Cosbie has been a football coach for seve ...

, and Randy White. White and Walls were voted to the Associated Press' All-NFL first team, while Dorsett was voted to the AP's All-NFL second team.

Publications

The Football Encyclopedia
Total Football
Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes

References

External links

1983 Dallas Cowboys

Pro Football Hall of Fame

Dallas Cowboys Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:1983 Dallas Cowboys Season Dallas Cowboys seasons

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...