1980 San Diego Chargers season

The 1980 San Diego Chargers season was the franchise's 11th season in the National Football League (NFL), and its 21st overall. the team failed to improve on their 12–4 record in 1979 and finished 11-5. They won their first playoff game in 17 years. The season ended with loss to the Raiders in the playoffs.

1980 San Diego Chargers season
Head coach	Don Coryell (3rd season)
General manager	Johnny Sanders (Since 1976)
Owner	Eugene V. Klein (Since 1966)
Home field	Jack Murphy Stadium
Results
Record	11–5
Division place	1st AFC West
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Bills) (20–14) Lost Conference Championship (Raiders) (27–34)
Pro Bowlers	8[1] QB Dan Fouts TE Kellen Winslow WR John Jefferson WR Charlie Joiner G Doug Wilkerson DE Fred Dean DT Gary Johnson DT Louie Kelcher
AP All-Pros	9[2] QB Dan Fouts TE Kellen Winslow WR John Jefferson WR Charlie Joiner G Doug Wilkerson LB Woodrow Lowe DE Fred Dean DT Gary Johnson DT Louie Kelcher

Dan Fouts broke his own record with over 4,500 yards passing, with 30 touchdowns. The Chargers finished #1 in total offense #2 in scoring. The defensive unit finished #6, leading the NFL with 60 QB sacks. The Chargers finished 11-5, winning the tiebreaker with the Oakland Raiders for the AFC West crown.

To help bolster a sagging running game, Running back Chuck Muncie was traded from the New Orleans Saints after four games.[3]

The Chargers Achilles heel that season was turnovers which they led the league in giveaways. In the Divisional Round against Buffalo, a 50-yard touchdown pass from Fouts to Ron Smith in the final 3 minutes of the game lifted the Chargers to a 20-14 win. In the AFC Championship Game, big plays and turnovers got the Chargers down, 28 to 7. The Chargers comeback fell short as the Raiders hung on to win 34-27, with Oakland running out the final 7 minutes of the 4th quarter.

1980 NFL Draft

Main article: 1980 NFL Draft

1980 San Diego Chargers draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
4	101	Ed Luther	Quarterback	San Jose State
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Roster

1980 San Diego Chargers final roster

	Quarterbacks 14 Dan Fouts 11 Ed Luther Running backs 37 Hank Bauer 25 John Cappelletti 34 LaRue Harrington 46 Chuck Muncie 41 Booker Russell 22 Mike Thomas 40 Clarence Williams FB Wide receivers 86 John Floyd 83 John Jefferson 18 Charlie Joiner 84 Ron Smith Tight ends 88 Greg McCrary 80 Kellen Winslow		Offensive linemen 60 Dan Audick T 64 Chuck Loewen T 62 Don Macek C 56 Bob Rush C 66 Billy Shields T 70 Russ Washington T 67 Ed White G 63 Doug Wilkerson G Defensive linemen 71 Fred Dean DE 73 Charles DeJurnett DT 79 Gary Johnson DT 68 Leroy Jones DE 74 Louie Kelcher DT 99 Wilbur Young DE		Linebackers 55 Bob Horn 57 Linden King 54 Jim Laslavic 51 Woodrow Lowe 58 Carl McGee 52 Ray Preston 59 Cliff Thrift Defensive backs 28 Willie Buchanon CB 48 Jerome Dove CB 27 Glen Edwards FS 42 Mike Fuller SS 44 Pete Shaw SS 45 Hal Stringert CB 29 Mike Williams CB Special teams  6 Rolf Benirschke K 17 Rick Partridge P		Reserve lists Practice squad Rookies in italics 53 active, 5 inactive, 5 practice squad

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 7, 1980	at Seattle Seahawks	W 34–13	62,042
2	September 14, 1980	Oakland Raiders	W 30–24	51,943
3	September 21, 1980	at Denver Broncos	W 30–13	74,970
4	September 28, 1980	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 24–7	45,161
5	October 5, 1980	Buffalo Bills	L 26–24	51,982
6	October 12, 1980	at Oakland Raiders	L 38–24	44,826
7	October 19, 1980	New York Giants	W 44–7	50,397
8	October 26, 1980	at Dallas Cowboys	L 42–31	60,639
9	November 2, 1980	at Cincinnati Bengals	W 31–14	46,406
10	November 9, 1980	Denver Broncos	L 20–13	51,435
11	November 16, 1980	Kansas City Chiefs	W 20–7	50,248
12	November 20, 1980	at Miami Dolphins	W 27–24	63,013
13	November 30, 1980	Philadelphia Eagles	W 22–21	51,567
14	December 7, 1980	at Washington Redskins	L 40–17	48,556
15	December 13, 1980	Seattle Seahawks	W 21–14	49,980
16	December 22, 1980	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 26–17	51,785

Playoffs

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
Divisional	January 3, 1981	Buffalo Bills	W 20–14	52,028
Conference Championship	January 11, 1981	Oakland Raiders	L 34–27	52,428

Game summaries

Week 2

See also: 1980 Oakland Raiders season

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Raiders	3	7	7	7	0	24
Chargers	3	7	0	14	6	30

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego

• Date: September 14
• Game time: 1:00 p.m.
• Game weather: 68°F, wind 8 mph
• Referee: Jim Tunney
• TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen
• Box Score

SD: Glen Edwards 2 INT, Willie Buchanon INT

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP Raiders Chargers 1 Chargers 52-yard field goal by Rolf Benirschke 0 3 1 Raiders 35-yard field goal by Chris Bahr 3 3 2 Chargers 3 10 2 Raiders 10 10 3 Raiders Willie Jones 11-yard fumble return, Chris Bahr kick good 17 10 4 Chargers 17 17 4 Chargers 17 24 4 Raiders 24 24 OT Chargers 24 30 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 24 30

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total • Chargers 3 24 3 0 30 Broncos 3 3 7 0 13 Date: September 21 Location: Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado Game start: 2:00 p.m. Game weather: 66°F, wind 9 mph

Scoring summary 1 SD Rolf Benirschke 53 yard field goal Chargers 3–0 1 DEN Fred Steinfort 51 yard field goal Tie 3–3 2 SD John Cappelletti 1 yard run (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 10–3 2 DEN Fred Steinfort 46 yard field goal Chargers 10–6 2 SD Charlie Joiner 22 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 17–6 2 SD Glen Edwards 68 yard interception return (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 24–6 2 SD Rolf Benirschke 32 yard field goal Chargers 27–6 3 SD Rolf Benirschke 42 yard field goal Chargers 30–6 3 DEN Haven Moses 15 yard pass from Craig Morton (Fred Steinfort kick) Chargers 30–13

[4]

Week 6

Week Six: San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders – Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
Chargers	7	3	7	7	24
Raiders	7	10	7	14	38

at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

• Date: October 12
• Game time: 1:00 p.m.
• Game weather: 62 F, wind 8 mph
• Game attendance: 44,826
• Referee: Ben Dreith
• TV: NBC
• Box Score

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP Chargers Raiders 1 Raiders 0 7 1 Chargers 7 7 2 Raiders 42-yard field goal by Chris Bahr 7 10 2 Chargers 25-yard field goal by Rolf Benirschke 10 10 2 Raiders 10 17 3 Raiders 10 24 3 Chargers 17 24 4 Chargers 24 24 4 Raiders 24 31 4 Raiders Fumble recovered in end zone by Todd Christensen for touchdown, Chris Bahr kick good 24 38 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 24 38

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total Giants 0 0 7 0 7 • Chargers 0 21 7 16 44 Date: October 19 Location: Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego, California Game start: 1:00 p.m. PST Game weather: 67°F, wind 9 mph Referee: Fred Wyant TV announcers (CBS): Lindsey Nelson & Hank Stram

Scoring summary 2 SD John Cappelletti 1 yard run (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 7–0 2 SD John Jefferson 39 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 14–0 2 SD Charlie Joiner 11 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 21–0 3 NYG Billy Taylor 1 yard run (Joe Danelo kick) Chargers 21–7 3 SD John Cappelletti 1 yard run (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 28–7 4 SD John Floyd 31 yard pass from Dan Fouts (kick failed) Chargers 34–7 4 SD Rolf Benirschke 50 yard field goal Chargers 37–7 4 SD Chuck Muncie 5 yard run (Rolf Benirschke kick) Chargers 44–7

[5]

Divisional playoffs

January 3, 1981

AFC: San Diego Chargers 20, Buffalo Bills 14

Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	0	14	0	0	14
Chargers	3	0	7	10	20

at Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego

• Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: 65 °F (18 °C), sunny
• Game attendance: 52,253
• Referee: Gene Barth
• TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Game information
Scoring SD – field goal Benirschke 22 SD 3–0 BUF – Leaks 1 run (Mike-Mayer kick) BUF 3–7 BUF – Lewis 9 pass from Ferguson (Mike-Mayer kick) BUF 3–14 SD – Joiner 9 pass from Fouts (Benirschke kick) BUF 10–14 SD – field goal Benirschke 22 BUF 13–14 SD – Smith 50 pass from Fouts (Benirschke kick) SD 20–14

Conference championships

January 11, 1981

AFC Championship: Oakland Raiders 34, San Diego Chargers 27

Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
Raiders	21	7	3	3	34
Chargers	7	7	10	3	27

at Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego

• Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: 71 °F (22 °C), mostly cloudy
• Game attendance: 52,675
• Referee: Cal Lepore
• TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Game information

Scoring OAK – Chester 65 pass from Plunkett (Bahr kick) OAK 7–0 SD – Joiner 48 pass from Fouts (Benirschke kick) 7–7 OAK – Plunkett 5 run (Bahr kick) OAK 14–7 OAK – King 21 pass from Plunkett (Bahr kick) OAK 21–7 OAK – van Eeghen 3 run (Bahr kick) OAK 28–7 SD – Joiner 8 pass from Fouts (Benirschke kick) OAK 28–14 SD – field goal Benirschke 26 OAK 28–17 SD – Muncie 6 run (Benirschke kick) OAK 28–24 OAK – field goal Bahr 27 OAK 31–24 OAK – field goal Bahr 33 OAK 34–24 SD – field goal Benirschke 27 OAK 34–27

Standings

AFC West
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
San Diego Chargers^(1)	11	5	0	.688	6–2	9–3	418	327	W2
Oakland Raiders^(4)	11	5	0	.688	6–2	9–3	364	306	W2
Kansas City Chiefs	8	8	0	.500	4–4	6–8	319	336	W1
Denver Broncos	8	8	0	.500	3–5	5–7	310	323	W1
Seattle Seahawks	4	12	0	.250	1–7	3–9	291	408	L9

Awards and records

• John Jefferson, NFL Leader in Receiving Yards, (1,340)
• Kellen Winslow, Second in NFL in Receiving Yards, (1,290)

Milestones

• The San Diego Chargers became the first team in NFL history to have three of its receivers with over 1,000 receiving yards.

References

1. "1980 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
2. "1980 NFL All-Pros". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
3. Williamson, Bill (May 14, 2013). "Chuck Muncie was a memorable Charger". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on May 16, 2013.
4. Pro-Football-Reference.com
5. Pro-Football-Reference.com

External links

• 1980 San Diego Chargers at pro-football-reference.com