1981 Dallas Cowboys season

The 1981 Dallas Cowboys season was their 22nd in the league. The team matched their previous output of 12–4, winning their fifth division title in six years.[1] They lost the Conference Championship game for the second straight season.

1981 Dallas Cowboys season
Head coach	Tom Landry
General manager	Tex Schramm
Owner	Clint Murchison, Jr.
Home field	Texas Stadium
Results
Record	12–4
Division place	1st NFC East
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Buccaneers) 38–0 Lost Conference Championship (49ers) 28–27

The season began with four straight victories, followed by two losses (including a surprising 45–14 blowout loss to the 49ers in week six). The Cowboys rebounded to win 8 of their 9 games to clinch the NFC East but had to settle for the conference's number two seed behind the 49ers.

The Cowboys easily defeated Tampa Bay in the divisional playoff to earn a rematch with the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The game was much closer this time, and the Cowboys still held a 27–21 lead with less than a minute to play. However, Joe Montana led a late drive and hit Dwight Clark in the famous "Catch" to give San Francisco a 28–27 lead. On the ensuing Cowboys possession, Danny White completed a pass to Drew Pearson, and was only an arms length away from breaking free from Eric Wright and most likely scoring a touchdown. Jim Stuckey recovered a White fumble on the next play, then the 49ers ran out the clock for the win.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Main article: 1981 NFL Draft

1981 Dallas Cowboys draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	26	Howard Richards	OT	Missouri
2	53	Doug Donley	WR	Ohio State
3	81	Glen Titensor	OG	BYU
4	91	Scott Pelluer	LB	Washington State	from San Francisco
4	108	Derrie Nelson	LB	Nebraska
5	137	Danny Spradlin	LB	Tennessee
6	163	Vince Skillings	DB	Ohio State
7	173	Ron Fellows	CB	Missouri
7	191	Ken Miller	DB	Eastern Michigan
8	218	Paul Piurowski	LB	Florida State
9	246	Mike Wilson	WR	Washington State
10	273	Pat Graham	DT	California
11	302	Tim Morrison	OG	Georgia
12	329	Nate Lundy	WR	Indiana
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted free agents

1981 Undrafted Free Agents of note

Player	Position	College
Michael Downs	Safety	Rice
Angelo King	Linebacker	South Carolina State
Everson Walls	Cornerback	Grambling State
Steve Wright	Tackle	Northern Iowa

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game Site	Attendance	Recap
1	September 6	at Washington Redskins	W 26–10	1–0	RFK Stadium	55,045	Recap
2	September 13	St. Louis Cardinals	W 30–17	2–0	Texas Stadium	63,602	Recap
3	September 21	at New England Patriots	W 35–21	3–0	Schaefer Stadium	60,311	Recap
4	September 27	New York Giants	W 18–10	4–0	Texas Stadium	63,449	Recap
5	October 4	at St. Louis Cardinals	L 17–20	4–1	Busch Memorial Stadium	49,477	Recap
6	October 11	at San Francisco 49ers	L 14–45	4–2	Candlestick Park	57,574	Recap
7	October 18	Los Angeles Rams	W 29–17	5–2	Texas Stadium	64,649	Recap
8	October 25	Miami Dolphins	W 28–27	6–2	Texas Stadium	64,221	Recap
9	November 1	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 17–14	7–2	Veterans Stadium	72,111	Recap
10	November 9	Buffalo Bills	W 27–14	8–2	Texas Stadium	62,583	Recap
11	November 15	at Detroit Lions	L 24–27	8–3	Pontiac Silverdome	79,694	Recap
12	November 22	Washington Redskins	W 24–10	9–3	Texas Stadium	64,587	Recap
13	November 26	Chicago Bears	W 10–9	10–3	Texas Stadium	63,499	Recap
14	December 6	at Baltimore Colts	W 37–13	11–3	Memorial Stadium	54,871	Recap
15	December 13	Philadelphia Eagles	W 21–10	12–3	Texas Stadium	64,955	Recap
16	December 19	at New York Giants	L 10–13 (OT)	12–4	Giants Stadium	73,009	Recap

Division opponents are in bold text

Game notes

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 0 14 6 6 26 Redskins 0 7 3 0 10 Date: Sunday Sept 6, 1981 Location: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 55,045 Game weather: 75°F, wind 8 mph Referee: Gene Barth TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 7 7 0 3 17 • Cowboys 14 13 3 0 30 Date: Sunday Sep 16, 1981 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 63,602 Game weather: 82°F, wind 9 mph Referee: Pat Haggerty TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 7 10 7 11 35 Patriots 7 7 7 0 21 Date: Monday Sept 21, 1981 Location: Schaefer Stadium Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 60,311 Game weather: 62°F, wind 13 mph Referee: Jerry Markbreit TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Don Meredith & Howard Cosell

Week 4

1 2 3 4 Total Giants 0 3 0 7 10 • Cowboys 7 3 0 8 18 Date: Sunday Sep, 1981 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 63,449 Game weather: 82°F, wind 10 mph TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall & Hank Stram

Week 5

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 3 7 0 17 • Cardinals 10 0 7 3 20 Date: Sunday Oct 4,1981 Location: Civic Center Busch Memorial Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 49,477 Game weather: Clear; 64°F, wind 12 mph Referee: Chuck Heberling TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Week 6

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 7 0 7 14 • 49ers 21 3 14 7 45 Date: Sunday Oct 11, 1981 Location: Candlestick Park Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 57,574 Game weather: Sunny; 58°F, wind 18 mph Referee: Jim Tunney TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total Rams 0 10 7 0 17 • Cowboys 12 14 0 3 29 Date: Sunday Oct 18, 1981 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 64,649 Game weather: 64°F, humidity 55% Referee: Gene Barth TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Fran Tarkenton, and Don Meredith

Week 8

1 2 3 4 Total Dolphins 0 6 7 14 27 • Cowboys 7 7 0 14 28 Date: Sunday Oct 25, 1981 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 64,221 Game weather: 54°F, humidity 74% Referee: Fred Wyant TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 0 3 0 14 17 Eagles 0 7 7 0 14 Date: Sunday Nov 1, 1981 Location: Veterans Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 72,111 Game weather: 53°F, wind 6 mph Referee: Jerry Seeman TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall & John Madden

Week 10

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 7 7 0 0 14 • Cowboys 7 0 20 0 27 Date: November 9 Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas Game start: 8:00 p.m. Game attendance: 62,583 Game weather: 50°F; Wind 20 Referee: Gordon McCarter TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Don Meredith, and Howard Cosell

Scoring summary 1 BUF Jerry Butler 16 yard pass from Joe Ferguson (Nick Mike-Mayer kick) BUF 7–0 1 DAL Doug Cosbie 12 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Tied 7–7 2 BUF Curtis Brown 9 yard pass from Joe Cribbs (Nick Mike-Mayer kick) BUF 14–7 3 DAL Tony Dorsett 73 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septien kick) Tied 14–14 3 DAL Tony Hill 37 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septien kick) DAL 21–14 3 DAL Rafael Septien 47 yard field goal DAL 24–14 3 DAL Rafael Septien 31 yard field goal DAL 27–14

[2]

Week 11

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 10 0 7 24 • Lions 0 7 10 10 27 Date: Sunday Nov 15, 1981 Location: Pontiac Silverdome Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 79,694 Game weather: Dome Referee: Fred Silva TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Week 12

1 2 3 4 Total Redskins 0 7 3 0 10 • Cowboys 7 3 7 7 24 Date: November 22 Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas Game start: 3:00 p.m. Game attendance: 64,587 Game weather: 51°F; wind 7 Referee: Dick Jorgensen TV announcers (CBS): Tom Brookshier and Roger Staubach

Scoring summary 1 DAL Butch Johnson 28 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) DAL 7–0 2 DAL Rafael Septien 25 yard field goal DAL 10–0 2 WSH Nick Giaquinto 7 yard pass from Joe Theismann (Mark Moseley kick) DAL 10–7 3 WSH Mark Moseley 26 yard field goal Tie 10–10 3 DAL Doug Cosbie 10 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septien kick) DAL 17–10 4 DAL Ron Springs 1 yard run (Rafael Septien kick) DAL 24–10

[3]

Week 13

1 2 3 4 Total Bears 0 3 0 6 9 • Cowboys 3 0 0 7 10 Date: Thursday Nov, 26 1981 Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game attendance: 63,499 Game weather: 68°F; humidity 62% Referee: Chuck Heberling TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Week 14

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 17 10 0 10 37 Colts 6 0 7 0 13 Date: Sunday Dec 6, 1981 Location: Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 54,871 Game weather: 39°F, wind 20 mph, wind chill 29°F TV announcers (CBS): Jim Kelly & John Dockery

Week 15

1 2 3 4 Total Eagles 3 7 0 0 10 • Cowboys 0 7 7 7 21 Date: Sunday Dec 13, 1981 Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 64,955 Game weather: 44°F, humidity 83%, wind 9 mph TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Week 16

1 2 3 4 OT Total Cowboys 0 0 0 10 0 10 • Giants 0 0 7 3 3 13 Date: Saturday Dec 19,1981 Location: Giants Stadium Game start: 12:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 73,009 Game weather: Overcast; 27°F, wind chill 13°F, wind 20mph Referee: Pat Haggerty TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Scoring summary 3 NYG Tom Mullady 20 yard pass from Scott Brunner (Joe Danelo kick) Giants 7–0 4 DAL Doug Cosbie 3 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Tie 7–7 4 DAL Rafael Septién 36 yard field goal Cowboys 10–7 4 NYG Joe Danelo 40 yard field goal Tie 10–10 OT NYG Joe Danelo 35 yard field goal Giants 13–10

Playoffs

Main article: 1981–82 NFL playoffs

Round	Date	Opponent	Result	Game Site	Attendance	Recap
Wild Card	First Round Bye
Divisional	January 2, 1982	Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3)	W 38–0	Texas Stadium	64,848	Recap
NFC Championship	January 10, 1982	at San Francisco 49ers (1)	L 27–28	Candlestick Park	60,525	Recap

Divisional Round

1 2 3 4 Total Bucs 0 0 0 0 0 • Cowboys 0 10 21 7 38 Date: Jan 2,1982 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 64,848 Game weather: Sunny; 57°F

Conference Championship

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 10 7 0 10 27 • 49ers 7 7 7 7 28 Date: Jan 10,1982 Location: Candlestick Park Game start: 4:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 60,525 Game weather: Sunny; 43°F, wind 5 mph Referee: Jim Tunney TV announcers (CBS): Vin Scully (play-by-play), Hank Stram (color commentator), Irv Cross (sideline reporter)

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Dallas Cowboys^(2)	12	4	0	.750	6–2	8–4	367	277	L1
Philadelphia Eagles^(4)	10	6	0	.625	4–4	7–5	368	221	W1
New York Giants^(5)	9	7	0	.563	5–3	8–6	295	257	W3
Washington Redskins	8	8	0	.500	3–5	6–6	347	349	W3
St. Louis Cardinals	7	9	0	.438	2–6	4–8	315	408	L2

Roster

Dallas Cowboys 1981 roster
Quarterbacks 18 Glenn Carano 14 Gary Hogeboom 11 Danny White P Running Backs 33 Tony Dorsett 23 James Jones RS 44 Robert Newhouse FB 30 Timmy Newsome RB/FB 20 Ron Springs FB Wide Receivers 83 Doug Donley 80 Tony Hill 86 Butch Johnson 88 Drew Pearson Tight Ends 84 Doug Cosbie 89 Billy Joe DuPree 87 Jay Saldi		Offensive Linemen 61 Jim Cooper T/C 67 Pat Donovan T 71 Andy Frederick T 65 Kurt Petersen G 64 Tom Rafferty C/G 70 Howard Richards G 68 Herbert Scott G 63 Glen Titensor C/G 73 Steve Wright T Defensive Linemen 76 Larry Bethea DT 78 John Dutton DT 72 Ed Jones DE 79 Harvey Martin DE 77 Bruce Thornton DE 54 Randy White DT		Linebackers 53 Bob Breunig MLB 59 Guy Brown OLB 51 Anthony Dickerson OLB 58 Mike Hegman OLB 57 Angelo King MLB/OLB 50 D. D. Lewis OLB 55 Danny Spradlin MLB Defensive Backs 31 Benny Barnes SS/CB 26 Michael Downs FS 27 Ron Fellows CB 32 Dennis Thurman CB 24 Everson Walls CB 41 Charlie Waters SS 45 Steve Wilson CB/WR Special Teams  1 Rafael Septién K		Reserve Lists 47 Dextor Clinkscale FS (IR) 62 John Fitzgerald C (IR) 42 Randy Hughes SS (IR) 56 Bill Roe MLB (IR) 52 Robert Shaw C (IR) 75 Ron Spears DE (IR) 66 Norm Wells G (IR) Rookies in italics 45 Active, 6 Inactive

References

1. 1981 Dallas Cowboys
2. Pro-Football-Reference.com
3. Pro-Football-Reference.com