1983 Los Angeles Rams season

1983 Los Angeles Rams season
1983 Los Angeles Rams season
Owner	Georgia Frontiere
Head coach	John Robinson
Home field	Anaheim Stadium
Results
Record	9–7
Division place	2nd NFC West
Playoff finish	Won Wild Card Playoffs (at Cowboys) 24–17; Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Redskins) 7–51
	← 1982; Rams seasons; 1984 →;

The 1983 Los Angeles Rams season was the team's 46th year with the National Football League and the 38th season in the city of Los Angeles. The franchise drafted a future Hall of Fame Running Back in Eric Dickerson. The season saw the team attempt to improve on its 2–7 record from 1982. The team started out 5–2 before splitting their next 4 games and then lost at home to Washington to sit at 7–5. They would split their last 4 games to finish 9–7 and make the playoffs for the first time since 1980 after a 2-year absence. In the playoffs, they defeated the Cowboys 24–17 in Dallas to advance to the Divisional Round. However, in the game, the Rams were annihilated 7–51 by the Redskins, who would move on to the Super Bowl, only to lose to the other Los Angeles NFL team, the Los Angeles Raiders, 38–9.

Offseason[]

NFL Draft[]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1983 Los Angeles Rams draft
1	2	Eric Dickerson * ^†	Running back	Southern Methodist
2	32	Henry Ellard *	Wide receiver	Fresno State
2	36	Mike Wilcher	Linebacker	North Carolina
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[1]

Personnel[]

Staff[]

**1983 Los Angeles Rams staff**

	Front office Owner/President – Georgia Frontiere Administrator of Football Operations – Jack Faulkner Director of Player Personnel – John Math Head coaches Head Coach – John Robinson Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Jimmy Raye Quarterbacks – Bob Baker Running Backs – Bruce Snyder Offensive Line – Hudson Houck			Defensive coaches Defensive Line – Assistant Defensive Line – Larry Brooks Inside Linebackers – Fritz Shurmur Outside Linebackers – Fred Whittingham Defensive Backs – Steve Shafer Special teams coaches Special Teams – Gil Haskell

^[2]

Roster[]

**1983 Los Angeles Rams roster**

	Quarterbacks 15 Vince Ferragamo 9 Jeff Kemp Running backs 29 Eric Dickerson 44 Mike Guman 30 Barry Redden Wide receivers 88 Preston Dennard 84 George Farmer 82 Otis Grant 85 Drew Hill 25 Gordon Jones 89 Jeff Simmons Tight ends 86 Mike Barber 83 James McDonald		Offensive linemen 62 Bill Bain T 60 Dennis Harrah G 72 Kent Hill G 68 Gary Kowalski T 64 Joe Shearin G 78 Jackie Slater T 56 Doug Smith C Defensive linemen 65 Richard Bishop DE 70 Charles DeJurnett DT 71 Reggie Doss DE 67 Myron Lapka DT 69 Greg Meisner DT 85 Jack Youngblood DE		Linebackers 52 George Andrews 50 Jim Collins 59 Mark Jerue 58 Mel Owens 94 Mike Wilcher OLB 53 Jim Youngblood Defensive backs 21 Nolan Cromwell FS 47 LeRoy Irvin CB 20 Johnnie Johnson SS 22 Vince Newsome SS 37 Ivory Sully CB Special teams 1 Mike Lansford K 6 John Misko P 13 Chuck Nelson K		Reserve lists {{{reserve_lists}}} Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Eric Dickerson[]

While he considered going to the Los Angeles Express in the United States Football League, Dickerson decided to go into the National Football League at the advice of his mother because the NFL had been around longer. He was selected second overall in the 1983 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. An immediate pro success, he established rookie records for most rushing attempts (390), most rushing yards gained (1,808) and most touchdowns rushing (18), including another two receiving touchdowns.^[3] His efforts earned him All-Pro, Pro Bowl, Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors.^[4]

Schedule[]

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 4	at New York Giants	W 16–6	1–0	Giants Stadium	75,281
2	September 11	New Orleans Saints	W 30–27	2–0	Anaheim Stadium	45,572
3	September 18	at Green Bay Packers	L 24–27	2–1	Milwaukee County Stadium	54,037
4	September 25	at New York Jets	L 24–27	2–2	Shea Stadium	52,070
5	October 2	Detroit Lions	W 21–10	3–2	Anaheim Stadium	49,403
6	October 9	at San Francisco 49ers	W 10–7	4–2	Candlestick Park	59,118
7	October 16	Atlanta Falcons	W 27–21	5–2	Anaheim Stadium	50,404
8	October 23	San Francisco 49ers	L 35–45	5–3	Anaheim Stadium	66,070
9	October 30	at Miami Dolphins	L 14–30	5–4	Miami Orange Bowl	72,175
10	November 6	Chicago Bears	W 21–14	6–4	Anaheim Stadium	53,010
11	November 14	at Atlanta Falcons	W 36–13	7–4	Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium	31,202
12	November 20	Washington Redskins	L 20–42	7–5	Anaheim Stadium	63,031
13	November 27	Buffalo Bills	W 41–17	8–5	Anaheim Stadium	48,246
14	December 4	at Philadelphia Eagles	L 9–13	8–6	Veterans Stadium	32,867
15	December 11	New England Patriots	L 7–21	8–7	Anaheim Stadium	46,503
16	December 18	at New Orleans Saints	W 26–24	9–7	Louisiana Superdome	70,148

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

September 25, 1983[]

Week 4: Los Angeles Rams 24, New York Jets 27[]

Game summary

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Rams	14	0	3	7	0	24
Jets	7	7	7	3	3	27

at Shea Stadium, Flushing, New York

Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 60 °F (16 °C)
Referee: Fred Silva
TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Playoffs[]

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
Wildcard	December 26, 1983	at Dallas Cowboys	W 24–17	43,521
Divisional	January 1, 1984	at Washington Redskins	L 51–7	55,363

December 26, 1983[]

NFC: Los Angeles Rams 24, Dallas Cowboys 17[]

Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	7	0	7	10	24
Cowboys	0	7	3	7	17

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST/11:30 a.m. CST
Game weather: 27 °F (−3 °C), mostly cloudy
Game attendance: 62,118
Referee: Gordon McCarter
TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

showGame information

January 1, 1984[]

NFC: Washington Redskins 51, Los Angeles Rams 7[]

Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	7	0	0	7
Redskins	17	21	6	7	51

at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C.

Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
Game weather: 38 °F (3 °C), mostly cloudy
Game attendance: 54,440
Referee: Ben Dreith
TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

showGame information

Standings[]

NFC West
view talk	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
San Francisco 49ers⁽²⁾	10	6	0	.625	4–2	8–4	432	293	W3
Los Angeles Rams⁽⁵⁾	9	7	0	.563	5–1	8–4	361	344	W1
New Orleans Saints	8	8	0	.500	2–4	7–5	319	337	L1
Atlanta Falcons	7	9	0	.438	1–5	4–8	370	389	W1

Awards and honors[]

Eric Dickerson, NFC Pro Bowl selection
Eric Dickerson, All-Pro selection
Eric Dickerson, NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year
Eric Dickerson, UPI NFL-NFC Rookie of the Year
Eric Dickerson, UPI NFC Player of the Year

References[]

^ "1983 Los Angeles Rams draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 4, 2014.
^ Associated Press (March 1, 1983). "Transactions". The Evening News. Retrieved October 3, 2014.
^ Eric's Days as a Ram, http://www.ericdickerson29.com/rams.htm Archived 2007-10-14 at the Wayback Machine
^ Eric Dickerson: Pro Football Hall of Fame, http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?PLAYER_ID=55

External links[]

1983 Los Angeles Rams at Pro-Football-Reference.com

[1] "1983 Los Angeles Rams draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 4, 2014.

[2] Associated Press (March 1, 1983). "Transactions". The Evening News. Retrieved October 3, 2014.

[3] Eric's Days as a Ram, http://www.ericdickerson29.com/rams.htm Archived 2007-10-14 at the Wayback Machine

[4] Eric Dickerson: Pro Football Hall of Fame, http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?PLAYER_ID=55

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

show v t Los Angeles Rams
Founded in 1936 Played in Cleveland, Ohio (1936–1945) and St. Louis, Missouri (1995–2015) Based in Inglewood, California Headquartered in Agoura Hills, California
Franchise	Franchise History in Cleveland in St. Louis Seasons Players Coaches First-round draft picks Starting quarterbacks Statistics Broadcasters Awards
Stadiums	Cleveland Stadium League Park Shaw Stadium Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Angel Stadium Busch Memorial Stadium The Dome at America's Center SoFi Stadium
Culture	Dan Reeves Carroll Rosenbloom Stan Kroenke Rampage Cheerleaders Triple Threat Crazylegs Heaven Can Wait Melonheads John Ramsey "Win" Big A Sign American Underdog
Lore	Bull Elephant backfield Fearsome Foursome Jerome Bettis trade The Greatest Show on Turf Mob Squad 2018 game vs. Kansas City Chiefs NOLA No-Call
Rivalries	Dallas Cowboys Kansas City Chiefs San Francisco 49ers
Retired numbers	7 28 29 74 75 78 80 85
Media	Broadcasters KCBS-FM Radio network J.B. Long D'Marco Farr Dick Enberg
Wild card berths (9)	1980 1983 1984 1986 1988 1989 2000 2004 2020
Division championships (17)	1945 1949 1967 1969 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1985 1999 2001 2003 2017 2018
Conference championships (7)	1950 1951 1955 1979 1999 2001 2018
League championships (3)	1945 1951 1999 (XXXIV)
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League (1937–present) Conference: National Football Conference Division: West Division
Former league affiliation	League: American Football League (1936)

show v t Los Angeles Rams seasons
Played in Cleveland (1936–1945) and St. Louis (1995–2015)
1930s	1936 1937 1938 1939
1940s	1940 1941 1942 1943 · 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
1950s	1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s	1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000s	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010s	2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020s	2020 2021
Bold indicates NFL Championship (1920–1969) or Super Bowl (1966–) victory Italics indicates NFL Championship (1920–1969) or Super Bowl (1966–) appearance

1983 Los Angeles Rams season

Contents

Offseason[]

NFL Draft[]

Personnel[]

Staff[]

Roster[]

Regular season[]

Eric Dickerson[]

Schedule[]

September 25, 1983[]

Week 4: Los Angeles Rams 24, New York Jets 27[]

Playoffs[]

December 26, 1983[]

NFC: Los Angeles Rams 24, Dallas Cowboys 17[]

January 1, 1984[]

NFC: Washington Redskins 51, Los Angeles Rams 7[]

Standings[]

Awards and honors[]

See also[]

References[]

External links[]