1982 – 83 NFL playoffs The NFL playoffs following the 1982 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XVII . A players ' strike reduced the regular season to nine games . Thus , the league used a special 16 - team playoff format ( dubbed the " Super Bowl Tournament " ) , just for this year . Division standings were ignored ( although each division did send at least one team to the playoffs ) . Eight teams from each conference were seeded 1 - 8 based on their regular season records : Because of the eight - game first round , this was the first ( and currently only ) time that NFL playoff games were regionally televised across the United States instead of nationwide . This year was also the only season in which the conference championship games were played on separate days . In addition , it marked the first time in NFL history in which a team that qualified for the playoffs had a losing record ( < . 500 ) , as both Cleveland and Detroit finished with 4 - 5 records ( . 444 ) . Both teams lost in the first round of the playoffs . Until 2010 , it was also the only time any team had made the playoffs with a losing record , a feat since broken by the 2010 Seattle Seahawks , which finished 7 - 9 ( . 438 ) . However , it is not the only time that teams with non - winning record s ( ≤ . 500 ) have made the playoffs . In eight seasons , nine teams with a record of 8 - 8 ( . 500 ) made the playoffs : 1985 Browns , 1990 Saints , 1991 Jets , 1999 Lions , 2004 Vikings , 2004 Rams , 2006 Giants , 2008 Chargers , and the 2011 Broncos . First round . January 8 , 1983 . NFC : Washington Redskins 31 , Detroit Lions 7 . The Redskins jumped to a 24 - 0 lead enroute to a 31 - 7 victory over the Lions . Washington receiver Alvin Garrett , who only caught 1 pass during the regular season , recorded 6 receptions for 110 yards and 3 touchdowns . Fullback John Riggins led the team on the ground with 119 rushing yards . Quarterback Joe Theismann compiled 210 passing yards and 3 touchdowns . And the defense forced five turnovers to lead this romp over Detroit . Jeris White got Washington on the board with a 77 - yard interception return for a touchdown . Then after Mark Moseley ' s 26 - yard field goal made it 10 - 0 , Joe Theismann connected with Garrett for touchdowns twice in the second quarter . NFC : Green Bay Packers 41 , St . Louis Cardinals 16 . Green Bay quarterback Lynn Dickey threw for 260 yards and 4 touchdowns en route to a 41 - 16 win . The Packers scored four touchdowns on four consecutive possessions . It was their first playoff victory since Super Bowl II in 1968 . Oddly , this victory was 15 years after that Super Bowl victory , 15 the same jersey number of Super Bowl II MVP ( and then - Packer coach ) Bart Starr . After stopping the Cardinals on fourth and goal on the Packers 1 - yard line , Dickey put Green Bay in the lead by finishing off two long drives with touchdown passes to John Jefferson and James Lofton . Later in the first half , they converted two St . Louis turnovers into a pair of touchdowns by Eddie Lee Ivery . By the end of the game , the Packers had set numerous franchise post season records , including most touchdown passes in a game ( 4 ) . most receiving yards ( 6 receptions for 148 yards by Jefferson ) , longest touchdown reception ( Jefferson ' s 60 - yard score ) , and longest field goal ( 46 yards by Jan Stenerud ) Cardinals receiver Roy Green caught 9 passes for 113 yards . AFC : Miami Dolphins 28 , New England Patriots 13 . The Dolphins controlled most of the game with four long touchdown drives , and intercepted Patriots quarterback Steve Grogan twice . Miami quarterback David Woodley had one of the best performances of his career , completing 16 of 19 passes for 246 yards and 2 touchdowns ( both to tight end Bruce Hardy ) with no interceptions , while also rushing for 16 yards . David Woodley ' s passer rating for this game was 153 . 8 . AFC : Los Angeles Raiders 27 , Cleveland Browns 10 . The Raiders gained 510 total yards of offense . Quarterback Jim Plunkett threw for 386 yards , while running back Marcus Allen rushed for 72 yards , caught 6 passes for 74 yards , and scored 2 touchdowns . January 9 , 1983 . AFC : New York Jets 44 , Cincinnati Bengals 17 . The underdog Jets overcame an early 14 - 3 deficit by racking up 517 yards of offense and scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter . Running back Freeman McNeil led the Jets to a victory with 210 rushing yards and a touchdown , while also catching a pass for 9 yards and throwing a touchdown pass on a halfback option play . Receiver Wesley Walker caught 8 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown . Jets quarterback Richard Todd completed 20 of 28 passes for 269 yards and a touchdown . Playing in the final postseason game of his legendary career , Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson completed 26 of 35 passes for a career playoff high 354 yards and 2 touchdowns , but was intercepted 3 times . Receiver Cris Collinsworth caught 7 passes for 120 yards . Two first quarter touchdown passes from Anderson gave the Bengals an early 14 - 3 lead , but New York stormed back with 17 points in the second quarter and added a field goal early in the third . With time running out in the third quarter , Bengals kicker Jim Breech made 20 - yard field goal . So despite giving up 20 unanswered points , Cincinnati only trailed 23 - 17 going into the final period . However , the Bengals self destructed in the fourth quarter , suffering one of the worst collapses in franchise history . Throughout the fourth quarter , Cincinnati had a 69 - yard touchdown pass called back by a false start penalty , gave up two Jets rushing touchdowns , missed a 46 - yard field goal , and threw two interceptions , one of which was returned a playoff record 98 yards for a touchdown by safety Darrol Ray . AFC : San Diego Chargers 31 , Pittsburgh Steelers 28 . The game began disastrously for the Chargers when James Brooks fumbled the opening kickoff , which was recovered for a touchdown by Guy Ruff of the Steelers . But San Diego battled back . Quarterback Dan Fouts threw for 333 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions to lead his team to victory . With the Steelers leading 28 - 17 in the fourth quarter , the Chargers scored two touchdowns in the final period — the second with only a minute remaining . Chargers running back Chuck Muncie rushed for 126 yards and caught a pass for 12 , while tight end Kellen Winslow caught 7 passes for 102 yards and 2 touchdowns . Steelers receiver John Stallworth caught 8 passes for 116 yards and a touchdown . Quarterback Terry Bradshaw threw for 325 yards and 2 touchdowns and scored a rushing touchdown in his final postseason of the game , but was intercepted twice . NFC : Dallas Cowboys 30 , Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17 . The Cowboys had 445 yards of total offense , while their defense held Buccaneers quarterback Doug Williams , playing in his final game in a Bucs uniform , to just 8 of 28 completions for 113 yards and intercepted him 3 times . Dallas running back Tony Dorsett rushed for 110 yards , while kicker Rafael Septien made 3 field goals . This was Tampa Bay ' s last playoff game until 1997 , by which time the Buccaneers ditched their orange uniforms . From 1983 through 1996 , the Bucs suffered 14 consecutive losing seasons , 13 of which saw Tampa Bay lose 10 or more games . NFC : Minnesota Vikings 30 , Atlanta Falcons 24 . The Vikings drove 72 yards to score the winning touchdown with 1 : 44 left in the game . Second round . January 15 , 1983 . NFC : Washington Redskins 21 , Minnesota Vikings 7 . Running back John Riggins led the Redskins to a victory with 185 rushing yards on 37 carries and a touchdown . Washington scored 21 points in the games ' s first 20 minutes . The Vikings cut a 14 - 0 Redskins lead in half early in the second period , but Washington responded immediately with Joe Theismann ' s touchdown pass to Alvin Garrett . In the closing moments of the game , fans at RFK Stadium began chanting " We Want Dallas " indicating their ideal choice of opponent for the NFC Championship Game . AFC : New York Jets 17 , Los Angeles Raiders 14 . Scott Dierking scored the Jets ' winning touchdown with 3 : 45 remaining to upset the top - seeded Raiders . The New York defense then forced two interceptions in the final minutes to seal the victory . Jets running back Freeman McNeil rushed for 105 yards and caught a pass for 11 . Wesley Walker caught 7 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown . January 16 , 1983 . AFC : Miami Dolphins 34 , San Diego Chargers 13 . Miami avenged their divisional playoff loss to San Diego in the previous season known as The Epic In Miami with dominating 34 - 13 win . The Dolphins defense completely shut down Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts , limiting him to just 15 of 34 completions for 194 yards and a touchdown while intercepting him 5 times . The Dolphins led 27 - 13 at halftime . Miami quarterback David Woodley , who was benched in the second quarter of the Epic in Miami due to poor performance , redeemed himself by completing 17 of 22 passes for 195 yards and 2 touchdowns with 1 interception , while also scoring a rushing touchdown . The Dolphins converted 3 turnovers , including 2 fumbled kickoffs , into 21 points . This was the final postseason game in the hall of fame careers of Chargers stars Dan Fouts , Charlie Joiner , and Kellen Winslow . NFC : Dallas Cowboys 37 , Green Bay Packers 26 . The Cowboys scored touchdowns on two 80 - yard drives while cornerback Dennis Thurman had 3 interceptions , including a 39 - yard touchdown and one to clinch the victory . Packers quarterback Lynn Dickey threw for a franchise postseason record 332 yards and a touchdown , but his 3 interceptions were too costly to overcome . Receiver James Lofton caught 5 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown , and also had a 71 - yard touchdown run on a reverse play , which tied the record for longest running play in a playoff game at the time . Two field goals by Rafael Septien , a touchdown run by Robert Newhouse , and Thurman ' s 39 - yard touchdown return gave the Cowboys a 20 - 7 lead by halftime . In the second half , the Packers mounted a strong comeback attempt , racking up 363 yards and scoring 19 points . Midway through the fourth quarter , Green Bay defensive back Mark Lee ' s 22 - yard interception return for a touchdown cut the Packers deficit to 30 - 26 . But later on , Thurman ' s third interception set up a 74 - yard scoring drive to put the game away with Newhouse ' s second touchdown run . Green Bay finished the game with a franchise playoff record 466 total yards . This would be the final playoff game that Cowboys ' coach Tom Landry would ever win in his career . Conference championships . January 22 , 1983 . NFC Championship : Washington Redskins 31 , Dallas Cowboys 17 . The Redskins sealed the victory by converting 2 turnovers in the final period into 10 points . The Cowboys scored first after a 75 - yard drive led to a 27 - yard field goal by kicker Rafael Septien . But Washington then scored on an 84 - yard drive that was capped by quarterback Joe Theismann ' s 19 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Charlie Brown . Then in the second quarter , after Redskins kicker Mark Moseley missed a 27 - yard field goal attempt , Dallas ' Rod Hill lost a muffed punt , setting up a 1 - yard rushing touchdown by Redskins running back John Riggins to increase their lead , 14 - 3 . With 32 seconds left in the first half , Cowboys quarterback Danny White suffered a concussion after being hit by Washington ' s Dexter Manley and was replaced by unknown backup Gary Hogeboom for the rest of the game . A short Redskins punt early in the third quarter then set up Hogeboom ' s 6 - yard touchdown toss to Drew Pearson , capping a six - play , 38 - yard drive , cutting the score to 14 - 10 . But on the ensuing kickoff , Mike Nelms returned the ball 76 yards down the right sideline to the Dallas 21 - yard line . A 22 - yard pass from Theismann to Brown was then followed by Riggins ' four - yard touchdown run . Hogeboom then responded by leading Dallas on an 84 - yard , 14 - play drive capped by his 23 - yard scoring pass to Butch Johnson , cutting the margin was back to 21 - 17 with 3 : 25 left in the third quarter . Dallas threatened to cut the lead further , driving to the Washington 23 - yard line early in the fourth quarter , but Septien missed a 42 - yard field goal . Following a Washington punt , Dallas had the ball at the Washington 32 - yard line , but linebacker Mel Kaufman made a leaping , over - the - shoulder interception that was intended to Cowboys receiver Tony Hill , setting up Washington kicker Mark Moseley ' s 29 - yard field goal with 6 : 55 left to play . Then from the Dallas 20 - yard line , defensive lineman Dexter Manley tipped Hogeboom ' s delayed screen pass intended for running back Tony Dorsett ; tackle Darryl Grant caught it and returned it 10 yards for the game - clinching touchdown . Riggins , who ran nine straight times to help Washington run out the clock in the final period , finished the game with 140 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns . January 23 , 1983 . AFC Championship : Miami Dolphins 14 , New York Jets 0 . On a wet , muddy field ( the Jets complained about the Dolphins ' decision not to place the tarp over the field before the game ) , the Dolphins defense held Jets quarterback Richard Todd to only 15 of 37 completions for 103 yards and intercepted 5 of his passes . Linebacker A . J . Duhe led Miami to a victory with 3 interceptions , scoring a 35 - yard touchdown and setting up the other Dolphins score . Miami held the Jets to 139 total yards and forced 5 interceptions . The game was scoreless until the third period when Duhe intercepted a pass from Todd . Aided by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the Jets , the Dolphins advanced to the New York 7 - yard line where Woody Bennett rushed into the end zone for a touchdown . Then early in the final period , Duhe intercepted a screen pass and returned it 35 yards for the game - clinching touchdown .