1981 Houston Oilers season

The 1981 Houston Oilers season was the franchise's 22nd overall and the 12th in the National Football League (NFL). Bum Phillips was fired as head coach during the offseason for failing to reach the Super Bowl, and replaced by Ed Biles. However, the Oilers defensive problems would catch up with them as they finished with a disappointing 7-9 record, as Earl Campbell fought through injuries to rush for 1,376 yards. After a fast 4-2 start, Houston would struggle in the second half, going 3-7 in their final 10 games, including a critical loss to the New Orleans Saints, who finished 4-12 in 1981.

1981 Houston Oilers season
Head coachEd Biles
General managerLadd Herzeg
OwnerBud Adams
Home fieldHouston Astrodome
Results
Record7–9
Division place3rd AFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify

Offseason

NFL draft
1981 Houston Oilers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
3 79 Mike Holston  Wide receiver Morgan State
4 106 Nick Eyre  Offensive tackle BYU
5 133 Delbert Fowler  Linebacker West Virginia
6 159 Bill Kay  Defensive back Purdue
7 193 Don Washington  Defensive back Texas A&M–Kingsville
8 217 Willie Tullis  Defensive back Troy
9 243 Avon Riley  Linebacker UCLA
10 270 Larry Jones  Running back Colorado State
11 297 Claude Matthews  Guard Auburn
12 324 Bill Capece  Placekicker Florida State
      Made roster  

[1]

Personnel

Staff
1981 Houston Oilers staff
Front office
  • Owner/Chairman of the Board/President – Bud Adams
  • Executive Vice President/General Manager – Ladd Herzeg

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Roster
1981 Houston Oilers roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule
A ticket for an October 26, 1981 game between the Oilers and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.com
recap
1 September 6 at Los Angeles Rams W 27–20 1–0 Anaheim Stadium Recap
2 September 13 at Cleveland Browns W 9–3 2–0 Cleveland Stadium Recap
3 September 20 Miami Dolphins L 10–16 2–1 Astrodome Recap
4 September 27 at New York Jets L 17–33 2–2 Shea Stadium Recap
5 October 4 Cincinnati Bengals W 17–10 3–2 Astrodome Recap
6 October 11 Seattle Seahawks W 35–17 4–2 Astrodome Recap
7 October 18 at New England Patriots L 10–38 4–3 Schaefer Stadium Recap
8 October 26 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 13–26 4–4 Three Rivers Stadium Recap
9 November 1 at Cincinnati Bengals L 21–34 4–5 Riverfront Stadium Recap
10 November 8 Oakland Raiders W 17–16 5–5 Astrodome Recap
11 November 15 at Kansas City Chiefs L 10–23 5–6 Arrowhead Stadium Recap
12 November 22 New Orleans Saints L 24–27 5–7 Astrodome Recap
13 November 29 Atlanta Falcons L 27–31 5–8 Astrodome Recap
14 December 3 Cleveland Browns W 17–13 6–8 Astrodome Recap
15 December 13 at San Francisco 49ers L 6–28 6–9 Candlestick Park Recap
16 December 20 Pittsburgh Steelers W 21–20 7–9 Astrodome Recap

Standings
AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Cincinnati Bengals(1) 12 4 0 .750 4–2 10–2 421 304 W2
Pittsburgh Steelers 8 8 0 .500 3–3 5–7 356 297 L3
Houston Oilers 7 9 0 .438 4–2 6–6 281 355 W1
Cleveland Browns 5 11 0 .313 1–5 2–10 276 375 L5
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References
  1. "1981 Houston Oilers draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
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