1983: Bradshaw Spurs Steelers to Playoff-Clinching Win in Last Appearance

The Pittsburgh Steelers had gotten off to a 9-2 start in 1983 and appeared to be cruising toward the playoffs. But after winning seven straight games through Week 11, they lost the next three contests. Not only did their record drop to 9-5, but the Steelers were in danger of missing the postseason altogether. Their lead in the AFC Central was down to a game over the Cleveland Browns, and they needed a win to assure a playoff spot.

To start at quarterback against the New York Jets at Shea Stadium on December 10 was Terry Bradshaw, who had led the Steelers to four championships in the 1970s. It would be the 35-year-old veteran’s first start of the season. He had undergone surgery on his right (throwing) elbow in March, which had been considered successful, but aggravated the injury in May and re-injured the elbow in training camp. Placed on injured reserve to start the season, he had been activated the week before, but had not played.

Backup Cliff Stoudt was the starting quarterback while Bradshaw was out, and while the team had been winning, it was primarily because of the running game and defense. The passing offense had not kept pace, and Head Coach Chuck Noll decided that, with the postseason on the line, it was time to turn to the most successful quarterback in the franchise’s history.

The Jets, under first-year Head Coach Joe Walton, were 7-7 and entertaining slim playoff hopes of their own. New York had been in the postseason the previous two years, advancing all the way to the AFC Championship game in ‘82. But Walt Michaels had resigned as head coach and Walton, the highly regarded offensive coordinator, was elevated to the top job. The result had been regression as the Jets played inconsistently.

As a side note, the game against the Steelers would be the last for the Jets at Shea Stadium, their home since 1964. They were moving to Giants Stadium in the New Jersey Meadowlands for the ’84 season, a venue they would share with New York’s other NFL club.

There were 53,996 fans on hand, with 6314 no-shows on a partly sunny and cool day. The teams traded punts on their first possessions. But when Pittsburgh got the ball back after another punt by the Jets, Bradshaw completed a 24-yard pass to TE Bennie Cunningham, followed by a 22-yard run by RB Frank Pollard to the New York 28 yard line. The drive stalled, but on a third-and-ten play, Bradshaw sprinted to his right and threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to WR Gregg Garrity, who was wide open in the middle of the end zone. The eight-play possession had covered 77 yards.

The Jets punted again, and again the Steelers moved down the field. After a three-yard run by RB Franco Harris, another aging veteran of the glory years in the ‘70s, Bradshaw threw a pass to Pollard for a 17-yard gain. Harris carried again on a sweep that picked up 18 yards. After two runs by Pollard, a pass interference penalty on New York made it first down on the Jets’ 14. Three plays later, and now into the second quarter, Bradshaw, being blitzed, fired a bullet to WR Calvin Sweeney who caught the ball at the five and ran into the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown. The Steelers were ahead by 14-0.

That was the end for Bradshaw, however. He suffered a bruise to the injured elbow when throwing the pass to Sweeney and was through for the game (and ultimately for his career). He had been in for a total of 20 plays covering three series, but it was enough to give the Steelers momentum and a lead they would not relinquish.

Stoudt came in at quarterback and the Pittsburgh offense cooled off. However, Jets QB Richard Todd, who couldn’t get his team across midfield in the first half, was intercepted by safety Ron Johnson, and the return was to the New York nine. The result was a 29-yard Gary Anderson field goal. Following another punt by the Jets, the Steelers drove 42 yards in 10 plays and Anderson kicked another field goal, of 40 yards, just prior to the end of the half. The score at halftime was 20-0, and Pittsburgh was very much in command.

After being intercepted twice and sacked three times, Todd was relieved by backup QB Pat Ryan in the third quarter. Ryan’s first pass was intercepted by CB Mel Blount after bouncing off the hands of WR Wesley Walker, setting up a 13-yard touchdown pass from Stoudt to Cunningham.

New York’s best series of the game followed when Ryan moved the team 75 yards in three plays, with two of them passes to WR Johnny “Lam” Jones of 36 yards and 27 yards for a TD. But it was 27-7 after three quarters. Stoudt threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Sweeney just over four minutes into the fourth quarter, and that provided the final score of 34-7.

Fans tore up the Shea Stadium turf, as well as some of the temporary seating for football, leading to numerous injuries and arrests. It was an ugly end to both the season and the tenure at the stadium in Queens.

But the big story had been Terry Bradshaw, who launched the big win for the Steelers by completing 5 of 8 passes for 77 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

“He was a major factor,” said Coach Noll of Bradshaw. “It was a remarkable performance considering what he's gone through. We saw him work during the week and we felt he was ready and I think he showed it today.”

“When you have a guy like Terry coming back, you have to use him,” said Cliff Stoudt. “And I guess his performance shows why. He wasn't 100 percent but he showed a lot of courage. He was the leader out there and when he got us the two quick scores, that was the ballgame.”

Other noteworthy performances were turned in by Franco Harris, who rushed for 103 yards on 26 carries, and Frank Pollard, who added 78 yards on 15 attempts as the Steelers rolled up 242 yards on the ground. Johnny “Lam” Jones was one of the few bright spots for New York, catching 7 passes for 146 yards and the team’s lone TD.

Pittsburgh lost the following week, with Stoudt at quarterback, but won the AFC Central with a 10-6 record. They lost in the Divisional round of the playoffs to the Raiders. The Jets, officially eliminated by the loss to the Steelers, also fell again in the season finale to finish at 7-9, tied with the Colts at the bottom of the AFC East.

While Chuck Noll hoped his veteran quarterback would be ready for further action, it was not to be. No one knew at the time, but the appearance against the Jets was the last of Bradshaw’s distinguished career. The damage to his throwing arm was too much to overcome.


The end for Bradshaw came fittingly enough as part of a clutch performance. While he might not always have received the credit he was due for quarterbacking the team to four championships, especially considering the strong supporting cast on offense and the many stars on defense, Bradshaw was an outstanding athlete and leader who was a key to the club’s success. He was selected to the Pro Bowl on three occasions and was a consensus first-team All-Pro choice in 1978, a year in which he led the NFL with 28 touchdown passes and the Steelers won their third Super Bowl. And Bradshaw did receive the ultimate honor – he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989.

1983: Redskins Overcome Raiders in 37-35 Thriller

The Washington Redskins, defending NFL champions, were off to a 3-1 start in 1983 as they hosted the undefeated Los Angeles Raiders on October 2 at RFK Stadium. Washington, under third-year Head Coach Joe Gibbs, had an outstanding offense built around power-running RB John Riggins operating behind an excellent line and the passing of QB Joe Theismann (pictured at right) to wide receivers Charlie Brown, Art Monk, and Alvin Garrett.

The Raiders, in Head Coach Tom Flores’ fifth season and the second year in LA, were led by 36-year-old QB Jim Plunkett, second-year RB Marcus Allen, and a tough veteran defense that included a colorful band of characters such as DE Lyle Alzado, linebackers Ted Hendricks and Matt Millen, and CB Lester Hayes. Combined with rising young stars like DE Howie Long and FS Vann McElroy, the Raiders defense had given up no more than 14 points in any of the first four games.

Sloppy play on the part of the Raiders offense, which was handicapped by not having Allen available due to a hip pointer, highlighted the first quarter. Plunkett tossed an interception in LA’s first offensive series that the Redskins capitalized on as Riggins ran for a two-yard touchdown. The turnovers continued as the veteran quarterback was picked off a second time and RB Kenny King fumbled the ball away, but the score stood at 7-0 after the opening period as the normally-reliable Mark Moseley missed on a 36-yard field goal attempt for Washington.

Moseley was successful on his next field goal attempt, from 28 yards out early in the second quarter. The teams traded punts, and it appeared that the Redskins had the Raiders offense boxed in after a Jeff Hayes kick was downed on the one yard line. But Plunkett immediately went long to WR Cliff Branch, who gathered in the pass at his 44 yard line and proceeded to tie the league record with a 99-yard touchdown.

Despite all of the errors, the Raiders were down only 10-7, but Washington came back with an 80-yard, seven-play drive that ended with Theismann throwing a five-yard TD pass to RB Joe Washington. The first half ended with the Redskins ahead, 17-7.

The second half didn’t start off any better for LA as the offense went three-and-out and Washington padded its lead with a 29-yard field goal by Moseley. But two possessions later, the passing game came alive as Plunkett connected with TE Todd Christensen for a 41-yard gain and, two plays later, tossed to WR Calvin Muhammad for a 35-yard touchdown.

After the Redskins were forced to punt, the Raiders drove to another score with Plunkett again throwing a TD pass to Muhammad, this time covering 22 yards. With the successful extra point, Los Angeles was now ahead by 21-20.

Riggins fumbled the ball away on the second play of Washington’s ensuing possession, and ten plays later, now in the fourth quarter, Plunkett hit Christensen for a three-yard touchdown and 28-20 lead.

Theismann and the Redskins came out passing, with consecutive completions to Charlie Brown that covered 25 yards. However, the drive stalled at the Washington 43 and Jeff Hayes punted it away. His 54-yard kick was fielded by RB Greg Pruitt at his own three yard line, and he proceeded to return it 97 yards for a touchdown; the Raiders were up by 35-20.

Just as it seemed that the momentum had shifted overwhelmingly to LA, the Redskins fought back with a Theismann pass to Joe Washington that covered 67 yards and set up an 11-yard touchdown pass to Brown three plays later.

With 6:15 left to play and the Redskins down by two scores, the Raiders were watching for an onside kick. What they got was a low and hard kick by Hayes that made it through the front line, hit a player’s foot, and spun wildly away. WR Dokie Williams initially fell on the ball for the Raiders but couldn’t hold on and safety Greg Williams finally recovered it for Washington at the LA 32. Moseley kicked a 34-yard field goal five plays later to narrow the Raiders’ lead to five points.

Hayes kicked deep for the Redskins with 4:28 remaining on the clock. Los Angeles went three-and-out and was forced to punt after a third-and-11 pass from Plunkett to Christensen gained nine yards. Starting at his own 31 and with just under two minutes to play in the game, Theismann completed three consecutive passes to Brown that covered a total of 63 yards. From the LA six yard line, Theismann found Washington in the end zone for a diving touchdown catch, and the Redskins ended up with a wild 37-35 win.

The statistics reflected the wildly shifting momentum of the game. Both teams accumulated over 400 yards, with the Redskins slightly ahead (as with the score) by 459 yards to 431. Washington also led in first downs (25 to 19) while the Raiders led in rushing yards (105 to 98) and sacks (six to five). However, LA also suffered six turnovers, to just one for the Redskins.


Joe Theismann passed for 417 yards as he completed 23 of 39 passes with three TDs and none intercepted. Charlie Brown caught 11 of those passes for 180 yards and a touchdown while Joe Washington (pictured above), seeing a great deal of action in the second half as the preferred running back in passing situations, grabbed 5 passes for 99 yards and the two TDs. John Riggins gained 91 yards rushing on 26 attempts with a score.

For the Raiders, after the shaky start Jim Plunkett ended up completing 16 of 29 passes for 372 yards with four touchdowns and four interceptions. Calvin Muhammad caught 5 passes for 112 yards and two TDs while Todd Christensen added 70 more yards on his 5 catches. Cliff Branch gained 99 yards on his one long reception of the day. In place of Marcus Allen, RB Frank Hawkins led the team on the ground with 64 yards on 15 carries.

Afterward, Washington guard Mark May said “I wouldn’t be surprised if we met them again in January.” He proved to be a good prophet. The Redskins lost just one more game the rest of the way as they finished atop the NFC East with a 14-2 record. While they were at it, they set a new league team scoring record with 541 points (since broken). The Raiders topped the AFC West with a 12-4 tally. Both clubs won their respective conference championships and met in Super Bowl XVIII where the Raiders got the last laugh with a stunning 38-9 upset victory (Marcus Allen’s presence was very much in evidence, as he gained 191 yards rushing and scored two touchdowns).


Joe Theismann ranked second in the NFL in passing (97.0 rating) and touchdown passes (29, tied with Danny White of the Cowboys) while throwing for 3714 yards. He received All-Pro honors and was selected to the Pro Bowl, along with Charlie Brown (pictured at left), who caught 78 passes for 1225 yards and 8 TDs.

John Riggins set a new record for touchdowns (24) while rushing for 1347 yards on 375 carries. Mark Moseley scored 161 points (at the time, the record for scoring by placekicking alone) while hitting on 33 of 47 field goal attempts.

Todd Christensen led the NFL in pass receptions with 92 while accumulating 1247 yards and 12 touchdowns. Jim Plunkett, in an up-and-down season, lost his starting job to Marc Wilson, regained it, and finished with 2935 yards, 20 TDs, and 18 interceptions; he was also sacked 42 times and was second in the league in yards lost due to sacks (363), but in the end was a championship quarterback for the second time.