1984 NFL season

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1984 National Football League season
Regular season
Duration September 2 – December 17, 1984
Playoffs
Start date December 23, 1984
AFC Champions Miami Dolphins
NFC Champions San Francisco 49ers
Super Bowl XIX
Date January 20, 1985
Site Stanford Stadium, Stanford, California
Champions San Francisco 49ers
Pro Bowl
Date January 27, 1985
Site Aloha Stadium
The 49ers playing against the Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX.

The 1984 NFL season was the 65th regular season of the National Football League. The Colts relocated from Baltimore, Maryland to Indianapolis, Indiana before the season. The Colts new home field was the Hoosier Dome. The New York Jets moved their home games from Shea Stadium in New York City to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

The season ended with Super Bowl XIX when the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Miami Dolphins 38-16 at Stanford Stadium in California. This was the first Super Bowl televised by ABC, who entered into the annual championship game rotation with CBS and NBC. This game marked the second shortest distance between the Super Bowl host stadium (Stanford, California) and a Super Bowl team (San Francisco 49ers).[1]

The 49ers became the first team in NFL history to win 15 games in a regular season and to win 18 in an entire season (including the post-season). Additionally, two major offensive records were set this season, with quarterback Dan Marino establishing a new single-season passing yards record with 5,084 (later broken by Drew Brees and Tom Brady in 2011 Then later broken by Peyton Manning in 2013 NFL Season), and Eric Dickerson establishing a new single-season rushing yards record with 2,105.

Also during the season, San Diego Chargers wide receiver Charlie Joiner became the all-time leader in career receptions; he set that mark in a game between the Chargers and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Pittsburgh's Three Rivers Stadium.

Salaries increased significantly over the past two seasons in the NFL, up nearly fifty percent; quarterback Warren Moon led the list at $1.1 million.[2]

Major rule changes

  • Linebackers are permitted to wear numbers 90–99.
  • The penalty for a kickoff or onside kick that goes out of bounds is 5 yards from the previous spot and a re-kick must be made. However, if the second (or more) kickoff or onside kick goes out of bounds, the receiving team may choose instead to take possession of the ball at the out of bounds spot.
  • Leaping to try to block a field goal or an extra point is illegal unless the defensive player was lined up at the line of scrimmage.
  • A kicker or holder who fakes being roughed or run into by a defensive player can receive an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
  • Unsportsmanlike conduct will also be called for any prolonged, excessive, or premeditated celebration by individual players or a group of players. This is usually referred to as the "Mark Gastineau Rule" because a major reason why this change was made was to stop him from performing his signature "Sack Dance" every time after he sacked an opposing quarterback.

Regular Season games not broadcast by Network TV

Date Time Teams Local TV Announcers
September 3, 1984 4:00 PM EDT Cleveland @ Seattle WKYC-TV (Cleveland area)
KING-TV (Seattle area)
October 14, 1984 4:00 PM EDT Buffalo @ Seattle WKBW-TV (Buffalo area)
KING-TV (Seattle area)

Final standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against

AFC East
Team W L T PCT PF PA
(1) Miami Dolphins 14 2 0 .875 513 298
New England Patriots 9 7 0 .563 362 352
New York Jets 7 9 0 .438 332 364
Indianapolis Colts 4 12 0 .250 239 414
Buffalo Bills 2 14 0 .125 250 454
AFC Central
Team W L T PCT PF PA
(3) Pittsburgh Steelers 9 7 0 .563 387 310
Cincinnati Bengals 8 8 0 .500 339 339
Cleveland Browns 5 11 0 .313 250 297
Houston Oilers 3 13 0 .188 240 437
AFC West
Team W L T PCT PF PA
(2) Denver Broncos 13 3 0 .813 353 241
(4) Seattle Seahawks 12 4 0 .750 418 282
(5) Los Angeles Raiders 11 5 0 .688 368 278
Kansas City Chiefs 8 8 0 .500 314 324
San Diego Chargers 7 9 0 .438 394 413
NFC East
Team W L T PCT PF PA
(2) Washington Redskins 11 5 0 .688 426 310
(5) New York Giants 9 7 0 .563 299 301
St. Louis Cardinals 9 7 0 .563 423 345
Dallas Cowboys 9 7 0 .563 308 308
Philadelphia Eagles 6 9 1 .406 278 320
NFC Central
Team W L T PCT PF PA
(3) Chicago Bears 10 6 0 .625 325 248
Green Bay Packers 8 8 0 .500 390 309
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 6 10 0 .375 335 380
Detroit Lions 4 11 1 .281 283 408
Minnesota Vikings 3 13 0 .188 276 484
NFC West
Team W L T PCT PF PA
(1) San Francisco 49ers 15 1 0 .938 475 227
(4) Los Angeles Rams 10 6 0 .625 346 316
New Orleans Saints 7 9 0 .438 298 361
Atlanta Falcons 4 12 0 .250 281 382

Tiebreakers

  • N.Y. Giants finished ahead of St. Louis and Dallas in the NFC East based on best head-to-head record (3–1 to Cardinals' 2–2 and Cowboys' 1–3).
  • St. Louis finished ahead of Dallas in the NFC East based on better division record (5–3 to Cowboys' 3–5).

Playoffs

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Divisional Playoffs
    Dec. 30 – Mile High Stadium        
AFC Wild Card Game AFC Championship
 3  Pittsburgh  24
Dec. 22 – Kingdome     Jan. 6 – Miami Orange Bowl
 2  Denver  17  
 5  L.A. Raiders  7  3  Pittsburgh  28
Dec. 29 – Miami Orange Bowl
 4  Seattle  13      1  Miami  45   Super Bowl XIX
 4  Seattle  10
    Jan. 20 – Stanford Stadium
 1  Miami  31  
 A1  Miami  16
Dec. 30 – RFK Stadium
NFC Wild Card Game NFC Championship    N1  San Francisco  38
 3  Chicago  23
Dec. 23 – Anaheim Stadium     Jan. 6 – Candlestick Park
 2  Washington  19  
 5  N.Y. Giants  16  3  Chicago  0
Dec. 29 – Candlestick Park
 4  L.A. Rams  13      1  San Francisco  23  
 5  N.Y. Giants  10
   
 1  San Francisco  21  

Statistical leaders

Team

Points scored Miami Dolphins (513)
Total yards gained Miami Dolphins (6,936)
Yards rushing Chicago Bears (2,974)
Yards passing Miami Dolphins (5,018)
Fewest points allowed San Francisco 49ers (227)
Fewest total yards allowed Chicago Bears (3,863)
Fewest rushing yards allowed Chicago Bears (1,377)
Fewest passing yards allowed New Orleans Saints (2,453)

Milestones

The following players set all-time records during the season:

Most Passing Yards Gained, Season Dan Marino, Miami (5,084)
Most Passing Touchdowns, Season Dan Marino, Miami (48)
Most Passes Completed, Season Dan Marino, Miami (362)
Most Rushing Yards Gained, Season Eric Dickerson, Los Angeles Rams (2,105)
Most Rushing Attempts, Season James Wilder, Tampa Bay (407)
Most Pass Receptions, Season Art Monk, Washington (106)
Most Receiving Touchdowns, Season Mark Clayton, Miami (18)
Most Extra Points Made, Season Uwe von Schamann, Miami (66)
Most Extra Point Attempts, Season Uwe von Schamann, Miami (70)
Most Sacks, Season Mark Gastineau, New York Jets (22.0)
Most Rushing Yards Gained, Career Walter Payton, Chicago (13,309 at the end of the season)
Most Receptions, Career Charlie Joiner, San Diego (657 at the end of the season)

Awards

Most Valuable Player Dan Marino, Quarterback, Miami
Coach of the Year Chuck Knox, Seattle
Offensive Player of the Year Dan Marino, Quarterback, Miami
Defensive Player of the Year Kenny Easley, Safety, Seattle
Offensive Rookie of the Year Louis Lipps, Wide Receiver, Pittsburgh
Defensive Rookie of the Year Bill Maas, Defensive Tackle, Kansas City

References

  1. The shortest distance was the Los Angeles Rams, whose home was the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before moving to Anaheim the year after playing in Super Bowl XIV vs the Pittsburgh Steelers, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Ca.
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