1986 Washington Redskins season

The 1986 Washington Redskins began with the team trying to improve on their 10–6 record from 1985 and return to the playoffs after missing them the previous year. The Redskins finished with a 12–4 record, good for second place in the NFC East, and qualified for the playoffs as a wild card. They defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Wild Card Game at RFK Stadium, then upset the defending champion Chicago Bears in the Divisional Playoffs. The season came to an end in the NFC Championship Game when the Redskins were defeated by their division rivals, the New York Giants.

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 7, 1986	Philadelphia Eagles	W 41–14	53,982
2	September 14, 1986	Los Angeles Raiders	W 10–6	55,235
3	September 21, 1986	at San Diego Chargers	W 30–27	57,853
4	September 28, 1986	Seattle Seahawks	W 19–14	54,157
5	October 5, 1986	at New Orleans Saints	W 14–6	57,378
6	October 12, 1986	at Dallas Cowboys	L 30–6	63,264
7	October 19, 1986	St. Louis Cardinals	W 28–21	53,494
8	October 27, 1986	at New York Giants	L 27–20	75,923
9	November 2, 1986	Minnesota Vikings	W 44–38	51,928
10	November 9, 1986	at Green Bay Packers	W 16–7	47,728
11	November 17, 1986	San Francisco 49ers	W 14–6	54,774
12	November 23, 1986	Dallas Cowboys	W 41–14	55,642
13	November 30, 1986	at St. Louis Cardinals	W 20–17	35,637
14	December 7, 1986	New York Giants	L 24–14	55,642
15	December 13, 1986	at Denver Broncos	L 31–30	75,905
16	December 21, 1986	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 21–14	61,816

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
New York Giants(1)	14	2	0	.875	7–1	11–1	371	236	W9
Washington Redskins(4)	12	4	0	.750	5–3	9–3	368	296	W1
Dallas Cowboys	7	9	0	.438	5–3	6–6	346	337	L5
Philadelphia Eagles	5	10	1	.344	1–6–1	3–8–1	256	312	L1
St. Louis Cardinals	4	11	1	.281	1–6–1	3–10–1	218	351	W1

Playoffs

NFC Wild Card Game

Washington Redskins 19, Los Angeles Rams 7

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	0	0	7	7
Redskins	10	3	3	3	19

at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

• Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
• Game attendance: 54,180
• Referee: Gordon McCarter
• TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

NFC Divisional Playoff

Washington Redskins 27, Chicago Bears 13

	1	2	3	4	Total
Redskins	7	0	7	13	27
Bears	0	13	0	0	13

at Soldier Field, Chicago

• Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. CST
• Game attendance: 65,141
• Referee: Bob McElwee
• TV announcers (CBS): Dick Stockton and Dan Dierdorf

NFC Championship Game

New York Giants 17, Washington Redskins 0

	1	2	3	4	Total
Redskins	0	0	0	0	0
Giants	10	7	0	0	17

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

• Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
• Game attendance: 76,633
• Referee: Pat Haggerty
• TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden