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.
1981 Philadelphia Eagles Draft Round Selection Player Position College 1 27 Leonard Mitchell DE Houston 2 55 Dean Miraldi G Utah 3 83 Greg LaFleur TE LSU 4 110 Calvin Murray RB Ohio State 6 165 Traded to NY Giants 7 174 Alan Duncan K Tennessee 192 Doak Field LB Baylor 8 220 Traded to Baltimore 9 247 Chuck Commiskey OL Ole Miss 10 275 Hubie Oliver RB Arizona 11 303 Gail Davis DT Virginia Union 12 331 Ray Ellis DB Ohio State
Personnel
Staff
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 with an 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 TIME1st Giants Joe Danelo 27-yard field goal 0 32nd Eagles Perry Harrington 1-yard rush (Tony Franklin kick) 7 3 Eagles Tony Franklin 47-yard field goal 10 33rd 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= (Sunny)
1 2 3 4 Total New England Patriots (2–0) 3 0 0 0 3 Philadelphia Eagles (2–0) 0 3 10 0 13 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 with an 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= (Sunny)
1 2 3 4 TotalWashington Redskins (0–4) 0 6 0 7 13 Philadelphia Eagles (4–0) 0 7 7 22 36 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= (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 indoors
1 2 3 4 TotalPhiladelphia 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 with a 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= (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= (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 with an wind.
1 2 3 4 TotalPhiladelphia 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= (Light rain)
1 2 3 4 TotalBaltimore Colts (1–10) 6 0 0 7 13 Philadelphia Eagles (9–2) 7 14 10 7 38