The Washington Redskins beat the New Orleans Saints 27–10 at the Superdome on Dec. 26, 1982. If that score makes you think Joe Gibbs’ team had an easy afternoon, rewind to the fourth quarter. New Orleans was still within seven points with less than nine minutes to play. By the time Washington got out of the building, the NFC race looked different, too.
A 57-day players’ strike had cut the season to nine games, giving every late result more weight. Washington arrived at 6–1 but had scored 12 and 15 points in its previous two games. The Saints needed a win to keep their playoff hopes alive, though quarterback Ken Stabler and running back George Rogers were both out. Guido Merkens took over at quarterback. New Orleans still had a defense capable of making the Redskins work for everything they got.
Charlie Brown’s Two Touchdowns Against the Saints
The first one came on Washington’s fourth offensive play. New Orleans sent all four linebackers after Joe Theismann, leaving Charlie Brown matched with cornerback Johnnie Poe. Theismann found Brown for a 57-yard touchdown and an early 7–0 lead. Brown finished with four catches for 156 yards, with two plays accounting for 115 of them. Washington had been searching for points; Brown gave it a way to get them in a hurry. Theismann would finish 14-for-23 for 264 yards and two touchdowns.
Then Washington gave New Orleans a way back in. Joe Washington lost a fumble near midfield, and Jimmy Rogers’ four-yard touchdown run tied the game at 7. Theismann went back to Brown for a 58-yard score, but this one came with an argument. Poe was flagged for interference, Brown’s contact with the sideline became the center of a long discussion among the officials, and Saints coach Bum Phillips protested. Poe told The Washington Post afterward, “After the refs huddled, I was surprised they gave them the touchdown.” They did. Mark Moseley added a 36-yard field goal, and Washington led 17–7 at halftime.
That lead still needed protecting. According to the Saints’ official account of the game, their defense allowed Washington just one first down in the third quarter. Morten Andersen’s 36-yard field goal made it 17–10. The Redskins would finish with 448 yards to New Orleans’ 197, but they had also lost two fumbles, and the Saints were one score from tying it. Gibbs put the afternoon this way: “With the way they play, you can never look very smooth.”
Why the Win Mattered to Washington’s Playoff Path
Moseley’s 45-yard field goal finally pushed the lead to 20–10. Joe Washington then broke a 40-yard run, Clarence Harmon followed with 19 more, and John Riggins scored from a yard out. That made it 27–10. Riggins carried nine times for 27 yards in New Orleans, a small line for the man who would soon define Washington’s postseason. On this day, Brown’s two long catches had given the offense the plays it needed most.
The other result came from Dallas. Philadelphia beat the Cowboys 24–20, leaving Washington alone atop the NFC at 7–1 with one regular-season game left. The Redskins shut out St. Louis 28–0 the following week, finished 8–1 and secured the conference’s top seed before going on to win Super Bowl XVII. Riggins became the face of that playoff run. Brown’s day in New Orleans helped make sure Washington didn’t have to leave RFK again until the Super Bowl.
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