3rd and Long — Replay the 1983 NFL Season With Dice

The 1983 Season

Washington came into 1983 as defending Super Bowl champions and immediately looked like a team intent on repeating — and then some. The Redskins went 14–2, scored 541 points, and set an NFL record that stood for years. Joe Theismann ran John Riggins behind the Hogs, Art Monk ran routes no one could cover, and the offence operated at a level the league hadn't seen. They were the prohibitive favourite to win it all.

Then January 22, 1984 arrived, and Marcus Allen took a handoff 74 yards to the end zone. Final score: LA Raiders 38, Washington 9. In Super Bowl XVIII, one of the most dominant regular-season teams in history was taken apart. The Raiders — 12–4, powerful, and led by a defence that wrecked everything — produced one of the most lopsided Super Bowls ever played.

Around the big two, the season was wide open. Seattle pulled off a playoff upset nobody expected. Green Bay scored 429 points and allowed 439 — a shootout team playing on the edge every week. Dan Marino took over in Miami and never gave the job back. Two terrible teams, Houston (2–14) and Tampa Bay (2–14), gave the rest of the league easy wins. In between was everything.

How It Works

3rd and Long uses a D100 resolution engine. Roll 1d100 for the home team, add the pre-calculated Home Mod, look up the score. Roll for the away team, add the Away Mod, look up. Higher score wins. Tied? Overtime.

A full game takes 3–5 minutes. A complete 16-week season plus playoffs in a single sitting.

What's in the Pack

| What's included | | |---|---| | All 28 team ratings | Offense & Defense, calibrated against real 1983 PPG stats | | Full 16-week schedule | Pre-calculated modifiers for all 224 games | | Blank standings sheet | Fill in the table as the season unfolds | | Scoring table & OT reference | Everything on one page | | 10-team playoff bracket | Wild Card through Super Bowl XVIII | | Full rules | Everything you need to play is in this one download |

What you need: Two d100 dice and a pencil.

Week 1 — Dallas at Washington

Washington Redskins (OFF 20, DEF 17) hosting the Dallas Cowboys (OFF 19, DEF 15).

Washington at home. Home Mod: (20 − 15) × 2 + 3 = +13. Away Mod: (19 − 17) × 2 = +4.

Washington's modifier is +13 on their own turf — one of the largest home advantages in the league that season, reflecting a 541-point offence playing behind a defence that barely let anyone score. Dallas, at +4, is the underdog but not a pushover — 29.9 points per game on the road is still elite.

Roll 84 for Washington (+13) = 97 → 45 points. Roll 73 for Dallas (+4) = 77 → 35 points. Washington win 45–35. That's 3rd and Long — the engine doesn't need flavour rules to produce drama.

(Real result: Dallas won 31–30. Happens.)

Get the Pack

The 1983 NFL Season Pack is available now on Payhip for £5.99 (~$7.50).

Complete. Standalone. Print it out and play tonight.

Get 3rd and Long — 1983 NFL Season Pack →

The 1980 and 1981 packs are also available. More seasons coming.