# 2001 Washington Redskins season

The 2001 season was the Washington Redskins' 70th in the National Football League (NFL), their 65th representing Washington, D.C., and the only season under head coach Marty Schottenheimer. Despite an ugly start to the season at 0–5, the Redskins began a 5-game winning streak, and by week 14 were 6–6 and in the midst in the NFC playoff hunt. However, despite outplaying their next two opponents, the Redskins dropped two critical games to the Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears, eliminating them from playoff contention, though they would finish the season on a high note at 8–8.

## Offseason
### NFL draft

2001 Washington Redskins Draft :
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 15 | Rod Gardner | WR | Clemson |
| 2 | 45 | Fred Smoot | CB | Mississippi State |
| 4 | 109 | Sage Rosenfels | QB | Iowa State |
| 5 | 154 | Darnerien McCants | WR | Delaware State |
| 6 | 186 | Mario Monds | DT | Cincinnati |

### Free agents

| Player | Position | New team |
| Albert Connell | Wide Receiver | New Orleans Saints |
| Ed Ellis | Tackle | San Diego Chargers |
| Brad Johnson | Quarterback | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Greg Jones | Linebacker | Chicago Bears |
| N. D. Kalu | Defensive End | Philadelphia Eagles |
| Adrian Murrell | Running Back | Carolina Panthers |
| Mike Sellers | Fullback | Cleveland Browns |
| Derek M. Smith | Linebacker | San Francisco 49ers |
| James Thrash | Wide Receiver | Philadelphia Eagles |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap |
| 1 | September 9 | at San Diego Chargers | L 3–30 | 0–1 | Qualcomm Stadium | Recap |
| 2 | September 24 | at Green Bay Packers | L 0–37 | 0–2 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 3 | September 30 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 13–45 | 0–3 | FedExField | Recap |
| 4 | October 7 | at New York Giants | L 9–23 | 0–4 | Giants Stadium | Recap |
| 5 | October 15 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 7–9 | 0–5 | Texas Stadium | Recap |
| 6 | October 21 | Carolina Panthers | W 17–14 | 1–5 | FedExField | Recap |
| 7 | October 28 | New York Giants | W 35–21 | 2–5 | FedExField | Recap |
| 8 | November 4 | Seattle Seahawks | W 27–14 | 3–5 | FedExField | Recap |
| 9 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 10 | November 18 | at Denver Broncos | W 17–10 | 4–5 | Invesco Field at Mile High | Recap |
| 11 | November 25 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 13–3 | 5–5 | Veterans Stadium | Recap |
| 12 | December 2 | Dallas Cowboys | L 14–20 | 5–6 | FedExField | Recap |
| 13 | December 9 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 20–10 | 6–6 | Sun Devil Stadium | Recap |
| 14 | December 16 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 6–20 | 6–7 | FedExField | Recap |
| 15 | December 23 | Chicago Bears | L 15–20 | 6–8 | FedExField | Recap |
| 16 | December 30 | at New Orleans Saints | W 40–10 | 7–8 | Louisiana Superdome | Recap |
| 17 | January 6 | Arizona Cardinals | W 20–17 | 8–8 | FedExField | Recap |

### Standings

NFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(3)}$ Philadelphia Eagles | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 343 | 208 | W2 |
| Washington Redskins | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 256 | 303 | W2 |
| New York Giants | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 294 | 321 | L2 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 295 | 343 | L1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 246 | 338 | L1 |