The 2017 Washington Redskins season was the
franchise
Franchise may refer to:
Business and law
* Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees
* Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...
's 86th
season
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
in the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...
and the fourth under
head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other Coach (sport), coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manage ...
Jay Gruden
Jay Michael Gruden (born March 4, 1967) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is an offensive consultant for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach of the Washington ...
. The Redskins ended the season losing eight of the final 13 games after a 2–1 start, failing to improve on their 8–7–1 record from the previous season, and were mathematically eliminated from playoff contention with a loss to the Chargers. This was likely due to the abundance of injuries at key positions and one of the league's toughest schedules.
In Week 2, the Redskins played the Rams in Los Angeles for the first time
in 23 years. It was also their first game in
the L.A. Coliseum in 28 years. Washington got their first win in the Coliseum
in 43 years.
In addition, this was the last of six seasons that quarterback
Kirk Cousins
Kirk Daniel Cousins (born August 19, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State and was drafted by the team then known as the Washingto ...
was on the roster, as he would join the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansio ...
in the following offseason.
Offseason
Organizational changes
On January 6, the Redskins fired defensive coordinator
Joe Barry
Joe Barry (born July 5, 1970) is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the assistant head coach and linebackers coach for the Los Ang ...
, secondary coach
Perry Fewell
Perry Fewell (born September 7, 1962) is an American football coach. He currently serves as the senior vice president of officiating administration for the National Football League's officiating department. Previously, he served as the defensive ...
, defensive line coach
Robb Akey
Robb Alan Akey (born July 24, 1966) is an American football coach, currently the defensive coordinator at Central Michigan University. He was the head coach at the University of Idaho from 2007 to 2012.
Early years
Born and raised in Colorado S ...
, and strength and conditioning coach
Mike Clark. General manager
Scot McCloughan
Scot G. McCloughan (born March 1, 1971) is an American football executive. He was formerly the general manager of the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins, as well as a senior personnel executive for the Seattle Seahawks, helping the 49ers ...
was fired on March 9.
Signings
2017 NFL Draft
Draft
Notes
* The Redskins swapped 1st round picks in 2016 with the
Houston Texans and acquired a second 6th round pick (No. 209th overall) this year. The Redskins also traded their 4th round pick in 2016 to the
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
and received a 5th round pick in 2016 and 5th round pick (No. 154th overall) this year. Lastly, the Redskins swapped their 5th round pick from 2016 for the 4th round pick (No. 114th overall) this year from the
New York Jets.
Staff
Final roster
Preseason
Regular season
Schedule
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
With the loss, the Redskins began the season 0-1, losing their fifth consecutive season opener. They also had their 5-game winning streak against the Eagles snapped.
Week 2: at Los Angeles Rams
Thanks to a 220-yard day from the running game, Cousins's late touchdown pass to
Ryan Grant and a late interception by Mason Foster, the Redskins started the season 1-1 for the first time since 2015.
Week 3: vs. Oakland Raiders
Week 4: at Kansas City Chiefs
Week 6: vs. San Francisco 49ers
Week 7: at Philadelphia Eagles
With the loss, the Redskins fell 3-3 and were swept by the Philadelphia Eagles for the first time since 2013.
Week 8: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 9: at Seattle Seahawks
Week 10: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Week 11: at New Orleans Saints
The Redskins suffered a loss to the Saints after going up 31–16 with 5:58 remaining in the fourth quarter. In under three minutes Drew Brees and the Saints offense rallied back to tie the game 31–31 with 1:05 left in the fourth. In overtime, Saint's kicker
Wil Lutz
William “Wil” Lutz (born July 7, 1994) is an American football placekicker for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia State.
Early life
Lutz was born in Newnan, Georgia. Both his ...
kicked the game-winning field goal from 28 yards away, handing the Redskins their most devastating loss of the season.
Week 12: vs. New York Giants
NFL on Thanksgiving Day
Since its inception in 1920, the National Football League (NFL) has played games on Thanksgiving Day, patterned upon the historic playing of college football games on and around the Thanksgiving holiday. The NFL's Thanksgiving Day games have tra ...
The Redskins won on Thanksgiving Day for the first time since
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
and their third time ever.
Kirk Cousins
Kirk Daniel Cousins (born August 19, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State and was drafted by the team then known as the Washingto ...
threw a pick six to
Janoris Jenkins
Janoris Jermain Jenkins (born October 29, 1988), nicknamed "Jackrabbit", is an American football cornerback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Alabama and Florida and was draf ...
, who suffered a season-ending injury on the play, to tie the game at 10. The Giants defense hung tough until Cousins and
Josh Doctson
Josh Doctson (born December 3, 1992) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at Texas Christian and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He has also been ...
broke through in the final minutes of the game.
This was
Eli Manning
Elisha Nelson Manning (born January 3, 1981) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons with the New York Giants. A member of the Manning football dynasty, he is the youngest son o ...
's 210th consecutive and final start before infamously being benched for
Geno Smith
Eugene Cyril "Geno" Smith III (born October 10, 1990) is an American football quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at West Virginia, leading the Mountaineers to multiple bowl gam ...
for one game. He was the second quarterback to ever start 210 consecutive games and has since been passed by
Philip Rivers
Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Chargers franchise. He played college football at NC State and was s ...
.
Week 13: at Dallas Cowboys
Week 14: at Los Angeles Chargers
With the loss, the Redskins were eliminated from playoff contention for the second consecutive season.
Week 15: vs. Arizona Cardinals
Week 16: vs. Denver Broncos
Week 17: at New York Giants
Standings
Division
Conference
References
External links
*
{{2017 NFL season by team
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
Washington Redskins seasons
2017 in sports in Maryland