# 2003 Washington Redskins season

The 2003 Washington Redskins season was the franchise's 72nd season in the National Football League (NFL). The team failed to improve on their 7–9 record from 2002, dropping to 5–11 and missing the playoffs for the fourth straight year. This was their worst season since 1994.
This was the first season since 1982 that the Redskins did not have cornerback Darrell Green, who retired after the 2002 season. Owing to different formulas for intraconference scheduling used by the NFL before 2002, it was the first time since 1994 that the Redskins played the Atlanta Falcons and the first time ever the Redskins had played at the Georgia Dome, which opened in 1992. During the season the Redskins wore a patch on their jerseys with the initials "GSS: Hail to the Redskins" to commemorate Gerald S. Snyder, the father of owner Daniel Snyder who had died during the 2003 offseason.
Following the season, defensive end Bruce Smith retired after 19 seasons in the NFL, Pro Bowl defensive back Champ Bailey would be traded to the Denver Broncos and head coach Steve Spurrier left after spending only two seasons coaching the Redskins.

## Offseason

The Redskins acquired former New York Jets players Randy Thomas, John Hall, Laveranues Coles, and Chad Morton in free agency.

### NFL Draft

2003 Washington Redskins draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 2 | 44 | Taylor Jacobs | WR | Florida |
| 3 | 81 | Derrick Dockery | G | Texas |
| 7 | 232 | Gibran Hamdan | QB | Indiana |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

### Undrafted free agents

2003 Undrafted Free Agents of note :
| Player | Position | College |
| Chris Clemons | Defensive end | Georgia |
| Ade Jimoh | Cornerback | Utah State |
| Sultan McCullough | Running back | USC |
| Clifton Smith | Linebacker | Syracuse |
| Kevin Ware | Tight end | Washington |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Game site | Record | Network | Kickoff (EST) | Attendance |
| 1 | September 4 | New York Jets | W 16–13 | FedExField | 1–0 | ABC | 9:00pm | 85,420 |
| 2 | September 14 | at Atlanta Falcons | W 33–31 | Georgia Dome | 2–0 | Fox | 1:00pm | 70,241 |
| 3 | September 21 | New York Giants | L 21–24 (OT) | FedExField | 2–1 | Fox | 4:15pm | 84,856 |
| 4 | September 28 | New England Patriots | W 20–17 | FedExField | 3–1 | CBS | 1:00pm | 83,632 |
| 5 | October 5 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 25–27 | Lincoln Financial Field | 3–2 | Fox | 4:15pm | 67,792 |
| 6 | October 12 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 13–35 | FedExField | 3–3 | Fox | 1:00pm | 85,490 |
| 7 | October 19 | at Buffalo Bills | L 7–24 | Ralph Wilson Stadium | 3–4 | Fox | 4:15pm | 73,149 |
| 8 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 9 | November 2 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 14–21 | Texas Stadium | 3–5 | Fox | 4:15pm | 64,002 |
| 10 | November 9 | Seattle Seahawks | W 27–20 | FedExField | 4–5 | Fox | 1:00pm | 80,728 |
| 11 | November 16 | at Carolina Panthers | L 17–20 | Ericsson Stadium | 4–6 | Fox | 1:00pm | 73,263 |
| 12 | November 23 | at Miami Dolphins | L 23–24 | Pro Player Stadium | 4–7 | ESPN | 8:30pm | 73,578 |
| 13 | November 30 | New Orleans Saints | L 20–24 | FedExField | 4–8 | Fox | 4:05pm | 76,821 |
| 14 | December 7 | at New York Giants | W 20–7 | Giants Stadium | 5–8 | Fox | 1:00pm | 78,217 |
| 15 | December 14 | Dallas Cowboys | L 0–27 | FedExField | 5–9 | Fox | 4:15pm | 70,284 |
| 16 | December 21 | at Chicago Bears | L 24–27 | Soldier Field | 5–10 | Fox | 1:00pm | 61,719 |
| 17 | December 27 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 7–31 | FedExField | 5–11 | ESPN | 8:30pm | 76,766 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||||

### Standings

NFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(1)}$ Philadelphia Eagles | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 5–1 | 9–3 | 374 | 287 | W1 |
| $^{(6)}$ Dallas Cowboys | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 5–1 | 8–4 | 289 | 260 | L1 |
| Washington Redskins | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 1–5 | 3–9 | 287 | 372 | L3 |
| New York Giants | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 1–5 | 3–9 | 243 | 387 | L8 |