1981 Atlanta Falcons season
1981 Atlanta Falcons season | |
---|---|
Owner | Rankin M. Smith Sr. |
Head coach | Leeman Bennett |
General manager | Eddie LeBaron |
Home field | Fulton County Stadium |
Results | |
Record | 7–9 |
Division place | 2nd NFC West |
Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 1981 Atlanta Falcons season was the Falcons' 16th season. The Falcons got off to a solid 3-0 start, but lost three key starters for the season in a 34-17 win at Fulton County Stadium over the San Francisco 49ers. The Falcons would go on to finish the season with a 7-9 record, losing seven games by five points or less, thus missing the playoffs for the first time since 1979.
Offseason[]
NFL Draft[]
1981 Atlanta Falcons draft | |||||
Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 25 | Bobby Butler | Cornerback | Florida State | |
Made roster |
Personnel[]
Staff[]
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
|
Roster[]
Regular season[]
Schedule[]
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 6 | New Orleans Saints | W 27–0 | 57,406
|
2 | September 13 | at Green Bay Packers | W 31–17 | 55,382
|
3 | September 20 | San Francisco 49ers | W 34–17 | 56,653
|
4 | September 27 | at Cleveland Browns | L 28–17 | 78,283
|
5 | October 5 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 16–13 | 71,488
|
6 | October 11 | Los Angeles Rams | L 37–35 | 57,841
|
7 | October 18 | St. Louis Cardinals | W 41–20 | 51,428
|
8 | October 25 | New York Giants | L 27–24 | 48,410
|
9 | November 1 | at New Orleans Saints | W 41–10 | 63,637
|
10 | November 8 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 17–14 | 59,127
|
11 | November 15 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 34–20 | 57,485
|
12 | November 23 | Minnesota Vikings | W 31–30 | 54,086
|
13 | November 29 | at Houston Oilers | W 31–27 | 40,201
|
14 | December 6 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 24–23 | 69,221
|
15 | December 14 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 21–16 | 57,054
|
16 | December 20, 1981 | Cincinnati Bengals | L 30–28 | 35,972
|
Standings[]
NFC West | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
San Francisco 49ers(1) | 13 | 3 | 0 | .857 | 5–1 | 10-2 | 357 | 250 | W5 |
Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 3–3 | 6–6 | 426 | 355 | L3 |
Los Angeles Rams | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 2–4 | 5–7 | 303 | 351 | L1 |
New Orleans Saints | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 2–4 | 2–10 | 207 | 378 | L4 |
Awards and records[]
- Steve Bartkowski, Falcons Game Record, Most Passing Yards in One Game, 416 yards (on November 15, 1981) [2]
- William Andrews, Falcons Game Record, Most Receiving Yards in One Game, 198 yards (on November 15, 1981). Which was later broken by Roddy White when he got 210 yards against the 49ers in the 2009 season.[2]
References[]
- ^ "1981 Atlanta Falcons draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
- ^ a b NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 98
External links[]
Categories:
- 1981 National Football League season by team
- Atlanta Falcons seasons
- 1981 in sports in Georgia (U.S. state)