1983 Houston Oilers season
OwnerBud Adams
General managerLadd Herzeg
Head coachEd Biles
Chuck Studley (interim)
Home fieldHouston Astrodome
Results
Record2–14
Division place4th AFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersRB Earl Campbell

The 1983 Houston Oilers season was the 24th season overall and 14th with the National Football League (NFL). After a strike-shorted 1–8 season, the Oilers traded their second draft choice to the Los Angeles Rams,[1] probably fearing that Eric Dickerson, the player they desired to pick with that second choice,[2] would join the Los Angeles Express of the USFL. Dickerson was cool about playing for the Oilers,[2] while his family was firmly opposed.[3]

The Oilers ultimately made a marginal improvement, winning two games,[4] but failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third consecutive season. The 460 points allowed by the team are the most given up by the team in franchise history.[5]

The week 13 game against Tampa Bay, before which both teams had 1–11 records, was nicknamed the "Repus Bowl". Steve Wulf wrote of the game, "Yes, this was the Small One, the battle of the beatens, the movable object meeting the resistible force. There were only tomorrows. When these two teams get together, nothing can happen. This game was for a marble."[6] Tampa Bay won the game 33–24.

The last remaining active member of the 1983 Houston Oilers was offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, who retired after the 2001 season.

Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 1983 NFL draft
1983 Houston Oilers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 9 Bruce Matthews * †  Guard USC
2 30 Harvey Salem  Tackle California
2 42 Keith Bostic *  Defensive back Michigan
3 58 Tim Joiner  Linebacker LSU
3 69 Chris Dressel  Tight end Stanford
3 83 Steve Brown  Defensive back Oregon
4 86 Greg Hill  Defensive back Oklahoma State
4 88 Mike McCloskey  Tight end Penn State
5 114 Larry Moriarty  Running back Notre Dame
5 139 Jerome Foster  Defensive end Ohio State
6 142 Steve Haworth  Defensive back Oklahoma
7 170 Herkie Walls  Wide receiver Texas
8 198 Robert Thompson  Linebacker Michigan
9 226 Kevin Potter  Defensive back Missouri
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[7]

Personnel

Staff

1983 Houston Oilers staff

Front office

  • Owner/Chairman of the Board/President – Bud Adams
  • Executive Vice President/General Manager – Ladd Herzeg

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams – Vic Rapp

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and Conditioning – Bill Allerheiligen

Roster

1983 Houston Oilers roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 September 4 Green Bay Packers L 38–41 (OT) 0–1 Astrodome Recap
2 September 11 at Los Angeles Raiders L 6–20 0–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
3 September 18 Pittsburgh Steelers L 28–40 0–3 Astrodome Recap
4 September 25 at Buffalo Bills L 13–30 0–4 Rich Stadium Recap
5 October 2 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 10–17 0–5 Three Rivers Stadium Recap
6 October 9 Denver Broncos L 14–26 0–6 Astrodome Recap
7 October 16 at Minnesota Vikings L 14–34 0–7 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Recap
8 October 23 Kansas City Chiefs L 10–13 (OT) 0–8 Astrodome Recap
9 October 30 at Cleveland Browns L 19–25 (OT) 0–9 Cleveland Stadium Recap
10 November 6 Cincinnati Bengals L 14–55 0–10 Astrodome Recap
11 November 13 Detroit Lions W 27–17 1–10 Astrodome Recap
12 November 20 at Cincinnati Bengals L 10–38 1–11 Riverfront Stadium Recap
13 November 27 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 24–33 1–12 Tampa Stadium Recap
14 December 4 Miami Dolphins L 17–24 1–13 Astrodome Recap
15 December 11 Cleveland Browns W 34–27 2–13 Astrodome Recap
16 December 18 at Baltimore Colts L 10–20 2–14 Memorial Stadium Recap

Season summary

Week 1 vs Packers

See also: 1983 Green Bay Packers season
Week One: Green Bay Packers (0–0) at Houston Oilers (0–0)
Period 1 2 34OTTotal
Packers 7 21 37341
Oilers 10 0 721038

at Houston Astrodome, Houston, Texas

Game information

Week 11 vs Lions

Week Eleven: Detroit Lions (5–5) at Houston Oilers (0–10)
Period 1 2 34Total
Lions 0 10 7017
Oilers 3 7 14327

at Houston Astrodome, Houston, Texas

  • Date: November 13, 1983
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: Indoors (dome)
  • Game attendance: 40,660
  • Referee: Bob Frederic
  • Box Score, Box Score
Team Category Player Statistics
Lions Passing Eric Hipple 17/29, 213 Yds, 3 INT
Rushing Billy Sims 20 Rush, 105 Yds, TD
Receiving Billy Sims 9 Rec, 90 Yds
Oilers Passing Oliver Luck 18/26, 189 Yds, 2 TD, INT
Rushing Earl Campbell 28 Rush, 107 Yds
Receiving Mike Renfro 7 Rec, 75 Yds

Standings

AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Pittsburgh Steelers(3) 10 6 0 .625 4–2 8–4 355 303 L1
Cleveland Browns 9 7 0 .563 3–3 7–5 356 342 W1
Cincinnati Bengals 7 9 0 .438 4–2 4–8 346 302 L1
Houston Oilers 2 14 0 .125 1–5 1–11 288 460 L1

References

  1. ^ "Rams, Oilers Trade Drafts". The Sacramento Bee. April 24, 1983. p. C4.
  2. ^ a b "Dickerson Not Eager To Be Oiler". Austin American-Statesman. April 23, 1983. p. C2.
  3. ^ "SMU's Dickerson Cool to Prospect of Oilers". The San Francisco Examiner. April 22, 1983. p. F6.
  4. ^ "1983 Houston Oilers". Pro Football Reference.
  5. ^ Patra, Kevin (December 25, 2012). "Tennessee Titans on pace to break shameful record". National Football League. Retrieved December 25, 2012.
  6. ^ Murphy, Austin (November 20, 2008). "Washington-Washington State playing for pride in Apple Cup". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
  7. ^ "1983 Houston Oilers draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
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