The 2004 season was the Washington Redskins' 73rd in the National Football League (NFL). Although they improved on their 5–11 record from 2003 to 6–10, they finished bottom of their division and missed the playoffs for the fifth straight year. The season saw Joe Gibbs come out of retirement to return as head coach. The team acquired running back Clinton Portis in a trade that sent Champ Bailey to the Denver Broncos in the 2004 offseason. Week 8 marked the first time since 1932 that the U.S. presidential election went against the Redskins Rule.
Offseason
Free agency Player Former team Marcus Washington Indianapolis Colts Shawn Springs Seattle Seahawks Cornelius Griffin New York Giants Phillip Daniels Chicago Bears Player New team Lional Dalton Kansas City Chiefs Jeremiah Trotter Philadelphia Eagles Peppi Zellner Arizona Cardinals Regan Upshaw New York Giants
Trades March 4, 2004 To Washington RedskinsClinton Portis To Denver BroncosChamp Bailey 2nd Rd. Draft Pick (2004) (Tatum Bell)
Staff
NFL draft
Final roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue 1 Denver Broncos W 20–17 1–0 FedExField 2 Carolina Panthers L 20–23 1–1 FedExField 3 at Miami Dolphins W 17–0 2–1 Pro Player Stadium 4 at St. Louis Rams L 3–28 2–2 Edward Jones Dome 5 Atlanta Falcons W 27–0 3–2 FedExField
Regular season Due to the addition of the Houston Texans in 2002 and a subsequent change to the NFL's scheduling formula, the 2004 season was the first time since 1991 that the Redskins played the Cincinnati Bengals; the Bengals won the game, the first time they had done so at the Redskins.Cincinnati Bengals v Washington Redskins It was also the first time the Redskins had hosted the Green Bay Packers since 1979.
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 12 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 16–10 1–0 FedExField 90,098 2 September 19 at New York Giants L 14–20 1–1 Giants Stadium 78,767 3 September 27 Dallas Cowboys L 18–21 1–2 FedExField 90,367 4 October 3 at Cleveland Browns L 13–17 1–3 Cleveland Browns Stadium 73,348 5 October 10 Baltimore Ravens L 10–17 1–4 FedExField 90,287 6 October 17 at Chicago Bears W 13–10 2–4 Soldier Field 61,985 7 Bye 8 October 31 Green Bay Packers L 14–28 2–5 FedExField 89,295 9 November 7 at Detroit Lions W 17–10 3–5 Ford Field 62,657 10 November 14 Cincinnati Bengals L 10–17 3–6 FedExField 87,786 11 November 21 at Philadelphia Eagles L 6–28 3–7 Lincoln Financial Field 67,720 12 November 28 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 7–16 3–8 Heinz Field 63,707 13 December 5 New York Giants W 31–7 4–8 FedExField 87,872 14 December 12 Philadelphia Eagles L 14–17 4–9 FedExField 90,089 15 at San Francisco 49ers W 26–16 5–9 Monster Park 65,710 16 December 26 at Dallas Cowboys L 10–13 5–10 Texas Stadium 63,705 17 January 2 Minnesota Vikings W 21–18 6–10 FedExField 78,876Note: Intra-divisional opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 2
Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
Standings
References