2000 Washington Redskins season

Background

Redskins owner Dan Snyder made it a point during the off-season to stack his team with talent. The Redskins entered the 2000 NFL draft with three first-round selections, the highest of which was the second overall pick which they had acquired in the Ricky Williams trade with the New Orleans Saints. With that pick, the Redskins selected linebacker Lavar Arrington from Penn State, who would go on to be a three-time Pro Bowler for the team. The other two picks were traded to the San Francisco 49ers in order to move up to the third overall pick, which the Redskins used to select Alabama offensive tackle Chris Samuels, a six-time future Pro Bowler and multi-year starter at left tackle.

In addition to these moves, Snyder also made a push for several veteran free agents to bolster the roster, signing quarterback Jeff George from the Minnesota Vikings to compete with Brad Johnson for starting quarterback. Snyder also signed veteran guard Jay Leeuwenberg and future Pro Bowl wide receiver Andre Reed after Reed was released by the Denver Broncos.

On the defensive side, the Redskins made three major acquisitions. Longtime Buffalo Bills defensive stalwart Bruce Smith was signed to play defensive end and add more experience to the front four of the Redskins. The secondary saw the addition of safety Mark Carrier, who Snyder signed from the Detroit Lions, and multi-time All Pro cornerback Deion Sanders, who left the division-rival Dallas Cowboys after five years to join the Redskins. With the new acquisitions, expectations for the season were elevated that the Redskins would compete to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XXXV, if not to win their fourth Vince Lombardi trophy outright.

The Redskins started out winning six of their first eight games, living up to expectations with game victories. Their on-field performance, however, belied their record. In those eight games, the Redskins did not score more than 21 points aside from a 35–16 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In their next two games before their bye week, the Redskins faced the defending AFC champion Tennessee Titans, who entered the Monday night matchup having won seven consecutive games, and the Arizona Cardinals, whose 2–5 start had led to the firing of Vince Tobin. The Redskins lost both games, dropping their record to 6–4.

Returning from their bye week, the Redskins managed to beat the defending world champion St. Louis Rams 33–20 in another Monday night matchup. After that, the Redskins lost back-to-back games to their divisional rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants, dropping their season record to 7-6 and all but eliminating them from playoff contention. After the loss to the Giants, Snyder fired head coach Norv Turner and replaced him with offensive coordinator Terry Robiskie, who immediately benched Johnson and named George the starter for the remainder of the year.

The Redskins fared no better under Robiskie or George, as they lost their first game under the new regime to the Dallas Cowboys at Texas Stadium. Washington managed to knock Troy Aikman out of the game with a concussion, which would eventually force him into retirement at the end of the season, but were beaten by Anthony Wright, his backup, 32–14 in what would be their final win of a 5–11 season. The Redskins followed this up by traveling to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in the final game played at Three Rivers Stadium, which they lost 24–3. The Redskins managed to avenge their loss to the Cardinals in the final week of the season, which brought their final record to 8-8, which was not sufficient for playoff eligibility.

Offseason

Draft

Main article: 2000 NFL draft

Personnel

Staff

Roster

53 active, 10 inactive, 2 practice squad

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Preseason

Regular season

Schedule

Standings

Best performances

• Marco Coleman, Week 1, 2.5 Quarterback Sacks vs. Carolina Panthers
• Marco Coleman, Week 5, 3.0 Quarterback Sacks vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• Albert Connell, 3rd Best Receiving Performance of Season, 211 Receiving Yards vs. Jacksonville Jaguars, October 22
• Bruce Smith, Week 12, 3.0 Quarterback Sacks vs. St. Louis Rams

Player stats

Passing

Rushing

Receiving

Sacks

Awards and records

• LaVar Arrington, PFW/Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team
• Marco Coleman, NFC Defensive Player of the Week, week 5
• Albert Connell, NFC Offensive Player of the Week, week 8
• Deion Sanders, NFL Defensive Player of the Week, week 5
• Chris Samuels, PFW/Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team
• Bruce Smith, NFC Defensive Player of the Week, week 12

References

References

1. "2009 Washington Redskins Media Guide".
2. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN. 0-7611-2480-2, p. 209
3. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN. 0-7611-2480-2, p. 207
4. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN. 0-7611-2480-2, p. 151
5. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN. 0-7611-2480-2, p. 202