NFL team season
The 1981 season was the Philadelphia Eagles ' 49th in the National Football League (NFL). They made the postseason for the fourth straight season (the first time in franchise history the Eagles made the postseason four straight times). The team was coming off a loss to the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XV the previous season. Because they made the Super Bowl in 1980 , the Eagles were picked by many not only to reach the Super Bowl, but to win it as well. The Eagles began the 1981 season with 6 straight wins, their best ever start to a season at the time. They won 3 of their next 5 games for a record of 9–2. Then they lost their next 4 games in a row to slip to 9–6, but clinched a playoff spot for the fourth straight season prior to the final week of the regular season due to owning a tiebreaker with the Packers and not finishing last had the Eagles, Giants, and Packers finished 9–7. The next week, they hammered the St. Louis Cardinals 38–0 to clinch the Wild Card Game would be held in Philadelphia. In the playoffs, they met their arch rivals the New York Giants . It was New York's first playoff appearance in 18 years. The Giants stunned the Eagles 27–21, ending the Eagles' season as well as hopes for a second straight Super Bowl appearance. The Eagles would not make the playoffs again until 1988 . They wouldn't reach the Super Bowl again until 2004 .
Offseason
NFL Draft
After going 12–4, winning the NFC title and losing in Super Bowl XV to the Oakland Raiders in the 1980 season, the Eagles were slotted to pick next to last in the 12 rounds of the 1981 NFL draft .
The NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 28–29, 1981 . ESPN covered all 12 rounds live for the first time. ESPN then showed a replay later that night. This was over a period of two days.
The Eagles had the 27th pick in each of the 12 rounds of the draft except for the 5th, 6th, and 8th rounds; they had no picks for these rounds because of draft-day trades. Instead, they had two picks in the 7th round: the 8th and 27th picks. The Eagles drafted a total of 10 players.
Personnel
Staff
1981 Philadelphia Eagles staff
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Special teams – Lynn Stiles
Roster
Regular season
The 1981 season schedule was set by how the Eagles finished in 1980, 1st in NFC East. The way it was laid out, 4 of the 5 teams in the same 5 team division could end up having 10 to 14 common opponents during the 1981 season. Also, when the last regular season game is over you know who you play the following year.
A home and away series vs Dallas, New York Giants, St. Louis and Washington = 8 games
The top four teams in the NFC East play the top four teams in the AFC East from the 1980 season = 4 games
The 1st and 4th place teams in NFC Central and NFC West in the 1980 season
Schedule
Week
Date
Opponent
Result
Attendance
1
September 6, 1981
at New York Giants
W 24–10
72,459
2
September 13, 1981
New England Patriots
W 13–3
71,089
3
September 17, 1981
at Buffalo Bills
W 20–14
78,331
4
September 27, 1981
Washington Redskins
W 36–13
70,664
5
October 5, 1981
Atlanta Falcons
W 16–13
71,488
6
October 11, 1981
at New Orleans Saints
W 31–14
52,728
7
October 18, 1981
at Minnesota Vikings
L 35–23
45,459
8
October 25, 1981
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
W 20–10
70,714
9
November 1, 1981
Dallas Cowboys
L 17–14
72,111
10
November 8, 1981
at St. Louis Cardinals
W 52–10
48,421
11
November 15, 1981
Baltimore Colts
W 38–13
68,618
12
November 22, 1981
New York Giants
L 20–10
66,827
13
November 30, 1981
at Miami Dolphins
L 13–10
67,797
14
December 6, 1981
at Washington Redskins
L 15–13
52,206
15
December 13, 1981
at Dallas Cowboys
L 21–10
64,955
16
December 20, 1981
St. Louis Cardinals
W 38–0
56,656
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1
Sunday, September 6, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at The Meadowlands on an AstroTurf playing surface at 70 °F (21 °C) with an 11 mph (18 km/h) wind
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (1–0)
0
10
7
7
24
New York Giants (0–1)
3
0
0
7
10
SCORING PLAYS
NYG
PHI
TIME
1st
Giants
Joe Danelo 27-yard field goal
0
3
2nd
Eagles
Perry Harrington 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
7
3
Eagles
Tony Franklin 47-yard field goal
10
3
3rd
Eagles
Rodney Parker 55-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
17
3
4th
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
24
3
Giants
Leon Perry 19-yard pass from Phil Simms (Joe Danelo kick)
24
10
Week 2
Sunday, September 13, 1981 Kickoff 4:00 PM Eastern
TV Broadcast: NBC
Announcers: Dick Enberg and John Brodie
Played at Veterans Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 74 °F (23 °C) (Sunny)
SCORING PLAYS
NE
PHI
TIME
1st
Patriots
John Smith 22-yard field goal
3
0
2nd
Eagles
Tony Franklin 46-yard field goal
3
3
3rd
Eagles
Tony Franklin 22-yard field goal
3
6
Eagles
Perry Harrington 6-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
3
13
Week 3
Thursday, September 17, 1981 Kickoff 8:30 PM Eastern
Played at Rich Stadium on AstroTurf playing surface at 55 °F (13 °C) with an 8 mph (13 km/h) wind
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (3–0)
7
3
7
3
20
Buffalo Bills (2–1)
0
14
0
0
14
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
BUF
TIME
1st
Eagles
Keith Krepfle 1-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
7
0
2nd
Bills
Joe Cribbs 4-yard rush (Nick Mike-Mayer kick)
7
7
Eagles
Tony Franklin 29-yard field goal
10
7
Bills
Frank Lewis 20-yard pass from Joe Ferguson (Nick Mike-Mayer kick)
10
14
3rd
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 15-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
17
14
4th
Eagles
Tony Franklin 46-yard field goal
20
14
Week 4
Sunday, September 27, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 68 °F (20 °C) (Sunny)
SCORING PLAYS
WAS
PHI
TIME
2nd
Eagles
Louie Giammona 13-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
0
7
Redskins
Mark Moseley 19-yard field goal
3
7
Redskins
Mark Moseley 22-yard field goal
6
7
3rd
Eagles
Louie Giammona 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
6
14
4th
Redskins
John Riggins 3-yard rush (Mark Moseley kick)
13
14
Eagles
Charlie A. Smith 29-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
13
21
Eagles
Tony Franklin 28-yard field goal
13
24
Eagles
Safety, Clarke tackled Theismann in end zone
13
26
Eagles
Tony Franklin 36-yard field goal
13
29
Eagles
Greg Brown 7-yard fumble return (Tony Franklin kick)
13
36
Week 5
Monday, October 5, 1981 Kickoff 9:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 62 °F (17 °C) (Clear)
1
2
3
4
Total
Atlanta Falcons (3–2)
0
0
10
3
13
Philadelphia Eagles (5–0)
6
7
0
3
16
SCORING PLAYS
ATL
PHI
TIME
1st
Eagles
Tony Franklin 36-yard field goal
0
3
Eagles
Tony Franklin 34-yard field goal
0
6
2nd
Eagles
Charlie A. Smith 30-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
0
13
3rd
Falcons
Mick Luckhurst 35-yard field goal
3
13
Falcons
Kenny Johnson 20-yard fumble return (Mick Luckhurst kick)
10
13
4th
Eagles
Tony Franklin 43-yard field goal
10
16
Falcons
Mick Luckhurst 43-yard field goal
13
16
Week 6
Sunday, October 11, 1981 Kickoff 12:00 PM Central
Played at Louisiana Superdome on an AstroTurf playing surface at 72 °F (22 °C) indoors
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (6–0)
14
10
7
0
31
New Orleans Saints (1–5)
7
0
0
7
14
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
NO
TIME
1st
Saints
George Rogers 5-yard rush (Benny Ricardo kick)
0
7
Eagles
Keith Krepfle 11-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
7
7
Eagles
Booker Russell 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
14
7
2nd
Eagles
Booker Russell 1-yard rush (Reggie Wilkes pass from Ron Jaworski)
21
7
Eagles
Tony Franklin 22-yard field goal
24
7
3rd
Eagles
Frank LeMaster 47-yard fumble return (Tony Franklin kick)
31
7
4th
Saints
George Rogers 3-yard rush (Benny Ricardo kick)
31
14
Week 7
Sunday, October 18, 1981 Kickoff 12:00 PM Central
Played at Metropolitan Stadium on a grass playing surface at 44 °F (7 °C) with a 27 mph (43 km/h) wind
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (6–1)
6
3
0
14
23
Minnesota Vikings (5–2)
0
21
7
7
35
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
MIN
TIME
1st
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 1-yard rush (kick failed)
6
0
2nd
Vikings
Joe Senser 11-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Rick Danmeier kick)
6
7
Eagles
Tony Franklin 30-yard field goal
9
7
Vikings
Sammy White 50-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Rick Danmeier kick)
9
14
Vikings
Bob Bruer 1-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Rick Danmeier kick)
9
21
3rd
Vikings
Ahmad Rashad 5-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Rick Danmeier kick)
9
28
4th
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 25-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
16
28
Vikings
Ted Brown 1-yard rush (Rick Danmeier kick)
16
35
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 21-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
23
35
Week 8
Sunday, October 25, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 55 °F (13 °C) (Rain)
1
2
3
4
Total
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4–4)
7
0
0
3
10
Philadelphia Eagles (7–1)
0
7
0
13
20
SCORING PLAYS
TB
PHI
1st
Buccaneers
Doug Williams 1-yard rush (Bill Capece kick)
7
0
2nd
Eagles
Keith Krepfle 6-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
7
7
4th
Eagles
Tony Franklin 44-yard field goal
7
10
Buccaneers
Bill Capece 29-yard field goal
10
10
Eagles
Tony Franklin 32-yard field goal
10
13
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 2-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
10
20
Week 9
Sunday, November 1, 1981 Kickoff 4:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 60 °F (16 °C) (Cloudy)
1
2
3
4
Total
Dallas Cowboys (8–1)
0
3
0
14
17
Philadelphia Eagles (7–2)
0
7
7
0
14
SCORING PLAYS
DAL
PHI
TIME
2nd
Cowboys
Rafael Septien 21-yard field goal
3
0
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 2-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
3
7
3rd
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 85-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
3
14
4th
Cowboys
Doug Cosbie 17-yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septien kick)
10
14
Cowboys
Tony Dorsett 9-yard rush (Rafael Septien kick)
17
14
Week 10
Sunday, November 8, 1981 Kickoff 12:00 PM Central
Played at the Busch Memorial Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface at 57 °F (14 °C) with an 8 mph (13 km/h) wind.
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (8–2)
7
10
14
21
52
St. Louis Cardinals (3–7)
7
3
0
0
10
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
STL
TIME
1st
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 19-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
7
0
Cardinals
Mel Gray 42-yard pass from Jim Hart (Neil O'Donoghue kick)
7
7
2nd
Cardinals
Neil O'Donoghue 21-yard field goal
7
10
Eagles
Rodney Parker 33-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
14
10
Eagles
Tony Franklin 32-yard field goal
17
10
3rd
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 14-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
24
10
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 38-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
31
10
4th
Eagles
Billy Campfield 2-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
38
10
Eagles
Wally Henry 20-yard pass from Joe Pisarcik (Tony Franklin kick)
45
10
Eagles
Booker Russell 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
52
10
Week 11
Sunday, November 15, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf
weather= 54 °F (12 °C) (Light rain)
1
2
3
4
Total
Baltimore Colts (1–10)
6
0
0
7
13
Philadelphia Eagles (9–2)
7
14
10
7
38
SCORING PLAYS
BAL
PHI
TEAM
1st
Eagles
Keith Krepfle 15-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
0
7
2nd
Colts
Curtis Dickey 1-yard rush (kick failed)
6
7
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 5-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
6
14
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
6
21
Eagles
Tony Franklin 32-yard field goal
6
24
Eagles
Charlie A. Smith 30-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
6
31
4th
Colts
Zachary Dixon 17-yard pass from Bert Jones (Mike Wood kick)
13
31
Eagles
Wally Henry 44-yard pass from Joe Pisarcik (Tony Franklin kick)
13
38
Week 12
Sunday, November 22, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 46 °F (8 °C) (Cloudy)
1
2
3
4
Total
New York Giants (8–4)
3
7
0
10
20
Philadelphia Eagles (9–3)
7
3
0
0
10
SCORING PLAYS
OAK
PHI
TIME
1st
Giants
Joe Danelo 39-yard field goal
3
0
Eagles
Keith Krepfle 6-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
3
7
2nd
Giants
Leon Bright 1-yard rush (Joe Danelo kick)
10
7
Eagles
Tony Franklin 27-yard field goal
10
10
4th
Giants
Joe Danelo 30-yard field goal
13
10
Giants
Terry Jackson 32-yard interception return (Joe Danelo kick)
20
10
Week 13
Monday, November 30, 1981 Kickoff 9:00 PM Pacific
Played at Orange Bowl on grass playing surface at 73 °F (23 °C) with an 8 mph (13 km/h) wind
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (9–4)
7
0
3
0
10
Miami Dolphins (8–4–1)
0
3
0
10
13
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
MIA
TIME
1st
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
7
0
2nd
Dolphins
Uwe von Schamann 42-yard field goal
7
3
3rd
Eagles
Tony Franklin 42-yard field goal
10
3
4th
Dolphins
Duriel Harris 17-yard pass from Don Strock (Uwe von Schamann kick)
10
10
Dolphins
Uwe von Schamann 27-yard field goal
10
13
Week 14
Sunday, December 6, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium on a grass playing surface at 43 °F (6 °C) with a 21 mph (34 km/h) wind
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (9–5)
0
13
0
0
13
Washington Redskins (6–8)
6
0
0
9
15
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
WAS
TIME
1st
Redskins
Joe Washington 6-yard rush (kick failed)
0
6
2nd
Eagles
Billy Campfield 25-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
7
6
Eagles
Billy Campfield 5-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (kick failed)
13
6
4th
Redskins
Mark Moseley 45-yard field goal
13
9
Redskins
Monte Coleman 52-yard interception return (kick failed)
13
15
Week 15
Sunday, December 13, 1981 Kickoff 3:00 PM Central
Played at Texas Stadium on an AstroTurf playing surface at 44 °F (7 °C) with a 9 mph (14 km/h) wind
1
2
3
4
Total
Philadelphia Eagles (9–6)
3
7
0
0
10
Dallas Cowboys (12–3)
0
7
7
7
21
SCORING PLAYS
PHI
DAL
TIME
1st
Eagles
Tony Franklin 50-yard field goal
3
0
2nd
Eagles
Booker Russell 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
10
0
Cowboys
Tony Hill 8-yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septien kick)
10
7
3rd
Cowboys
Butch Johnson 36-yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septien kick)
10
14
4th
Cowboys
Ron Springs 12-yard rush (Rafael Septien kick)
10
21
Week 16
Sunday, December 21, 1981 Kickoff 1:00 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 29 °F (−2 °C) (Sunny)
1
2
3
4
Total
St. Louis Cardinals (7–9)
0
0
0
0
0
Philadelphia Eagles (10–6)
7
21
10
0
38
SCORING PLAYS
STL
PHI
TIME
1st
Eagles
Charlie A. Smith 4-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
0
7
2nd
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 9-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
0
14
Eagles
Hubie Oliver 13-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
0
21
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 6-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
0
28
3rd
Eagles
Billy Campfield 29-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
0
35
Eagles
Tony Franklin 44-yard field goal
0
38
Standings
Postseason
Schedule
Game summaries
NFC Wildcard Game
Sunday, December 27, 1981 Kickoff 3:30 PM Eastern
Played at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf playing surface
weather= 38 °F (3 °C) (Light drizzle)
1
2
3
4
Total
New York Giants (10–7)
20
7
0
0
27
Philadelphia Eagles (10–7)
0
7
7
7
21
SCORING PLAYS
NYG
PHI
TIME
1st
Giants
Leon Bright 9-yard pass from Scott Brunner (kick failed)
6
0
Giants
John Mistler 10-yard pass from Scott Brunner (Joe Danelo kick)
13
0
Giants
Mark Haynes 0-yard fumble return (Joe Danelo kick)
20
0
2nd
Eagles
Harold Carmichael 15-yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick)
20
7
Giants
Tom Mullady 22-yard pass from Scott Brunner (Joe Danelo kick)
27
7
3rd
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 6-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
27
14
4th
Eagles
Wilbert Montgomery 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick)
27
21
References
External links
Franchise Stadiums Culture Lore Rivalries Division championships (15) Conference championships (5) League championships (4) Retired numbers Media Current league affiliations