1983 Houston Oilers season

1983 Houston Oilers season
Head coach	Ed Biles Chuck Studley (interim)
Home field	Astrodome
Results
Record	2–14
Division place	4th AFC Central
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1983 Houston Oilers season was the 24th season overall and 14th with the National Football League (NFL). The team improved upon their previous season's output of 1–8, winning two games,^[1] 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.^[2]

The week 13 game against Tampa Bay, in 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."^[3]

Offseason

NFL draft

1983 Houston Oilers draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	9	Bruce Matthews * ^†	Guard	USC
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[4]

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 Head Coach – Ed Biles Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Kay Dalton Offensive Backs – Elijah Pitts Receivers – Andy Bourgeois Tight Ends – Vic Rapp Offensive Line – Bill Walsh			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Chuck Studley Defensive Line – Ralph Staub Linebackers – Dick Selcer Defensive Backs – Ken Houston Special teams coaches Special Teams – Vic Rapp Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Bill Allerheiligen

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 4, 1983	Green Bay Packers	L 41–38	44,073
2	September 11, 1983	at Los Angeles Raiders	L 20–6	37,526
3	September 18, 1983	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 40–28	44,150
4	September 25, 1983	at Buffalo Bills	L 30–13	60,070
5	October 2, 1983	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 17–10	56,901
6	October 9, 1983	Denver Broncos	L 26–14	44,209
7	October 16, 1983	at Minnesota Vikings	L 34–14	58,910
8	October 23, 1983	Kansas City Chiefs	L 13–10	39,462
9	October 30, 1983	at Cleveland Browns	L 25–19	68,851
10	November 6, 1983	Cincinnati Bengals	L 55–14	39,706
11	November 13, 1983	Detroit Lions	W 27–17	40,660
12	November 20, 1983	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 38–10	46,375
13	November 27, 1983	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 33–24	38,625
14	December 4, 1983	Miami Dolphins	L 24–17	39,434
15	December 11, 1983	Cleveland Browns	W 34–27	29,746
16	December 18, 1983	at Baltimore Colts	L 20–10	20,418

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. 1983 Houston Oilers
2. Patra, Kevin (December 25, 2012). "Tennessee Titans on pace to break shameful record". National Football League. Retrieved December 25, 2012.
3. Murphy, Austin (November 20, 2008). "Washington-Washington State playing for pride in Apple Cup". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
4. "1983 Houston Oilers draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.