| 1959 Washington Redskins season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Owner | George Preston Marshall |
| General manager | Dick McCann |
| Head coach | Mike Nixon |
| Home stadium | Griffith Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 3–9 |
| Division place | 5thNFL Eastern |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
The1959Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 28th season in theNational Football League (NFL). The team failed to improve on their 4–7–1 record from 1958 and finished 3–9.
The Redskins continued their ongoing strategy of establishing themselves as dominant NFL franchise for the Southern United States, licensing television broadcast of their games to a network of 40 stations spread across Virginia, the Carolinas, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida. They also licensed radio broadcasts of their games to a network of 94 stations across the aforementioned eight states, as well as Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Louisiana.[1]
The team also continued their "Days for Dixie" halftime shows, which highlighted two Southern states each year, marking "Georgia Day" on October 18 and "North Carolina Day" on December 6.[1] Each of these dates featured a guest marching band from the featured state which provided halftime entertainment.[1]
Related to this regional marketing appeal, the Redskins remained the last bastion ofracial segregation in the NFL in 1959, with the team standing alone in not including a black player on its roster from1955 until1962.[2]
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School/Club team |
|---|
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 16 | atSan Francisco 49ers | L 24–27 | 0–1 | Kezar Stadium | 21,101 |
| 2 | August 21 | atLos Angeles Rams | W 23–21 | 1–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 85,888 |
| 3 | August 28 | atBaltimore Colts | L 10–23 | 1–2 | Baltimore Memorial Stadium | 22,409 |
| 4 | September 5 | vs.Chicago Bears | L 14–52 | 1–3 | Gator Bowl Stadium(Jacksonville, FL) | 28,245 |
| 5 | September 12 | vs.Green Bay Packers | L 13–20 | 1–4 | Bowman Gray Stadium(Winston-Salem, NC) | 15,000 |
| 6 | September 19 | atDetroit Lions | L 14–52 | 1–5 | Briggs Stadium | 28,245 |
The Redskins offered seats for $5.00 and $4.50, with very few of the premium seats remaining ahead of the season.[3] Season tickets cost $30 for the upper and South boxes and $25 for all others.[3]
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 27 | atChicago Cardinals | L 21–49 | 0–1 | Soldier Field | 21,892 | Recap | ||
| 2 | October 4 | atPittsburgh Steelers | W 23–17 | 1–1 | Forbes Field | 26,570 | Recap | ||
| 3 | October 11 | Chicago Cardinals | W 23–14 | 2–1 | Griffith Stadium | 25,937 | Recap | ||
| 4 | October 18 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 6–27 | 2–2 | Griffith Stadium | 28,218 | Recap | ||
| 5 | October 25 | atCleveland Browns | L 7–34 | 2–3 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 42,732 | Recap | ||
| 6 | November 1 | atPhiladelphia Eagles | L 23–30 | 2–4 | Franklin Field | 39,854 | Recap | ||
| 7 | November 8 | Baltimore Colts | W 27–24 | 3–4 | Griffith Stadium | 32,773 | Recap | ||
| 8 | November 15 | Cleveland Browns | L 17–31 | 3–5 | Griffith Stadium | 32,266 | Recap | ||
| 9 | November 22 | atGreen Bay Packers | L 0–21 | 3–6 | New City Stadium | 31,853 | Recap | ||
| 10 | November 29 | atNew York Giants | L 14–45 | 3–7 | Yankee Stadium | 60,982 | Recap | ||
| 11 | December 6 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 14–34 | 3–8 | Griffith Stadium | 24,325 | Recap | ||
| 12 | December 13 | New York Giants | L 10–24 | 3–9 | Griffith Stadium | 26,198 | Recap | ||
| Note: Intra-conference opponents are inbold text. | |||||||||
| NFL Eastern Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
| New York Giants | 10 | 2 | 0 | .833 | 8–2 | 284 | 170 | W4 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 268 | 278 | L1 | |
| Cleveland Browns | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 270 | 214 | W1 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 5 | 1 | .545 | 6–4 | 257 | 216 | W1 | |
| Washington Redskins | 3 | 9 | 0 | .250 | 2–8 | 185 | 350 | L5 | |
| Chicago Cardinals | 2 | 10 | 0 | .167 | 2–8 | 234 | 324 | L6 | |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
|
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL)
| Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST)
| Reserve
|
| Player | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
| Eddie LeBaron | 77 | 173 | 44.5% | 1,077 | 8 | 11 | 61.4 |
| Player | Attempts | Yards | Average | Long | Touchdowns |
| Don Bosseler | 119 | 644 | 5.4 | 41 | 3 |
| Player | Number | Yards | Average | Long | Touchdowns |
| Bill Anderson | 35 | 734 | 66.7 | 70 | 6 |
| Joe Walton | 21 | 317 | 35.2 | 41 | 3 |
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| Affiliations |
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| Franchise | |
| Stadiums | |
| Key personnel |
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| Culture and lore | |
| Rivalries | |
| Retired numbers | |
| Hall of Famers | |
| League championships (5) | |
| Division championships (15) | |
| Wild Card playoff berths (10) | |
