1971 Washington Redskins season


The 1971 Washington Redskins season was the team's 40th in the National Football League, and its 35th in Washington, D.C. The Redskins were led by first-year head coach George Allen, who had been the head coach of the Los Angeles Rams for the previous five seasons.
Coming into the 1971 season, the team had not made the postseason in 26 years. The Redskins had had only four winning seasons since their last playoff berth in 1945, the most recent a 7–5–2 campaign in 1969 under Vince Lombardi, who died of colon cancer in September 1970.
Allen was Washington's fourth head coach in as many seasons. Lombardi succeeded Otto Graham, and assistant Bill Austin took over when Lombardi fell mortally ill in the summer of 1970, and posted a 6–8 record.
Despite a broken left ankle suffered by leading receiver Charley Taylor in a Week 6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs that forced him to miss the remainder of the season, the Redskins went 9–4–1, good for second place in the NFC East. They earned a wild card berth, but lost in the opening divisional round at San Francisco, 24–20.

Off-season

NFL Draft

RoundPickPlayerPositionSchool/Club Team
238Cotton SpeyrerWide ReceiverTexas
6141Conway HaymanGuardDelaware
7166Willie GermanyDefensive BackMorgan State
9219Mike FanucciDefensive EndArizona State
10244Jesse TaylorRunning BackCincinnati
11272George StarkeTackleColumbia
12297Jeff SeversonDefensive BackCal-Long Beach
13322Dan RyczekCenterVirginia
14349Bill BynumQuarterbackWest New Mexico
15375Anthony ChristnovichGuardLa Crosse
16400Glenn TuckerLinebackerNorth Texas

Roster

Regular season

Schedule

Game summaries

Week 3

Postseason

WeekDateOpponentResultAttendance
DivisionalDecember 26, 1971at San Francisco 49ersL 24–20
45,327

Standings

Richard Nixon play

There was a rumor that President Richard Nixon called a key play that caused the Redskins to lose to the 49ers in the divisional round of the playoffs. Nixon, a friend of George Allen, once attended a practice game where he tried the same play to much better results.

Awards, records, and honors