1981 Atlanta Falcons (NFL) |
| 2nd place • National Football Conference • Western Division • 7-9-0 .438 |
| Head Coach: Leeman Bennett |
| Jerry Glanville | Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backs |
| Mike McDonnell | Administrative Assistant |
| John North | Offensive Backs |
| Jimmy Raye | Wide Receivers |
| Doug Shively | Linebackers |
| Jim Stanley | Defensive Line |
| Bill Walsh | Offensive Line |
| Dick Wood | Quarterbacks |
| SCORES | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day | Date | Opponent | Score | Location | Venue | Attendance | |||
| Sat | 8/1/1981 | N | Cleveland Browns | 10-24 | L | Canton, OH | Fawcett Stadium | 23921 | |
| Sat | 8/8/1981 | A | Oakland Raiders | 16-17 | L | Oakland, CA | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum | 42697 | |
| Sat | 8/15/1981 | H | New York Jets | 21-20 | W | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 51163 | |
| Sat | 8/22/1981 | A | Minnesota Vikings | 19-20 | L | Bloomington, MN | Metropolitan Stadium | 42908 | |
| Fri | 8/28/1981 | H | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 27-7 | W | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 53688 | |
| Sun | 9/6/1981 | H | New Orleans Saints | 27-0 | W | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 57406 | |
| Sun | 9/13/1981 | A | Green Bay Packers | 31-17 | W | Green Bay, WI | Lambeau Field | 55382 | |
| Sun | 9/20/1981 | H | San Francisco 49ers | 34-17 | W | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 56653 | |
| Sun | 9/27/1981 | A | Cleveland Browns | 17-28 | L | Cleveland, OH | Cleveland Stadium | 78283 | |
| Mon | 10/5/1981 | A | Philadelphia Eagles | 13-16 | L | Philadelphia, PA | Veterans Stadium | 71488 | |
| Sun | 10/11/1981 | H | Los Angeles Rams | 35-37 | L | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 57841 | |
| Sun | 10/18/1981 | H | St. Louis Cardinals | 41-20 | W | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 51428 | |
| Sun | 10/25/1981 | H | New York Giants | 24-27 | L | OT | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 60749 |
| Sun | 11/1/1981 | A | New Orleans Saints | 41-10 | W | New Orleans, LA | Louisiana Superdome | 63637 | |
| Sun | 11/8/1981 | A | San Francisco 49ers | 14-17 | L | San Francisco, CA | Candlestick Park | 59127 | |
| Sun | 11/15/1981 | H | Pittsburgh Steelers | 20-34 | L | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 57485 | |
| Mon | 11/23/1981 | H | Minnesota Vikings | 31-30 | W | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 60749 | |
| Sun | 11/29/1981 | A | Houston Oilers | 31-27 | W | Houston, TX | Astrodome | 40201 | |
| Sun | 12/6/1981 | A | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 23-24 | L | Tampa, FL | Tampa Stadium | 69221 | |
| Mon | 12/14/1981 | A | Los Angeles Rams | 16-21 | L | Anaheim, CA | Anaheim Stadium | 57054 | |
| Sun | 12/20/1981 | H | Cincinnati Bengals | 28-30 | L | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | 35972 | |
Exhibition game. Playoff game. A=Away game. H=Home game. N=Neutral site game. W=Win. L=Loss. T=Tie. OT=Overtime.
Click on Date to see boxscore.
| ROSTER | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | No | Pos | Ht | Wt | Age | College | GP | GS |
| William Andrews | 31 | FB | 6-0 | 210 | 26 | Auburn | 16 | 16 |
| Steve Bartkowski | 10 | QB | 6-4 | 215 | 29 | California | 16 | 16 |
| Warren Bryant | 66 | ROT | 6-6 | 270 | 26 | Kentucky | 11 | 10 |
| Bobby Butler | 23 | LCB | 5-11 | 177 | 22 | Florida State | 16 | 16 |
| Lynn Cain | 21 | HB | 6-1 | 205 | 26 | East Los Angeles JC; Southern California | 16 | 16 |
| Buddy Curry | 50 | RILB | 6-4 | 222 | 23 | North Carolina | 16 | 16 |
| Paul Davis | 59 | LB | 6-1 | 215 | 23 | North Carolina | 13 | 0 |
| Tony Daykin | 55 | LB | 6-1 | 220 | 26 | Georgia Tech | 16 | 0 |
| Wilson Faumuina | 74 | RDE | 6-5 | 275 | 27 | San Jose State | 16 | 6 |
| Mickey Fitzgerald | 48 | RB | 6-2 | 235 | 24 | Virginia Tech | 1 | 0 |
| Wallace Francis | 89 | WR | 5-11 | 190 | 30 | Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 16 | 16 |
| Blane Gaison | 34 | CB-S | 6-0 | 185 | 23 | Hawaii | 14 | 0 |
| Bob Glazebrook | 36 | SS | 6-1 | 200 | 25 | Fresno CC; Fresno State | 16 | 16 |
| Pat Howell | 64 | LOG | 6-5 | 253 | 24 | Southern California | 16 | 2 |
| Alfred Jackson | 85 | WR | 6-0 | 190 | 26 | Texas | 16 | 0 |
| John James | 6 | P | 6-3 | 199 | 32 | Florida | 16 | 0 |
| Alfred Jenkins | 84 | WR | 5-10 | 172 | 29 | Morris Brown | 16 | 16 |
| Kenny Johnson | 37 | RCB | 5-10 | 175 | 23 | Mississippi State | 16 | 16 |
| Earl Jones | 20 | CB | 6-0 | 178 | 24 | Norfolk State | 16 | 0 |
| June Jones | 14 | QB | 6-4 | 200 | 28 | Oregon; Hawaii; Portland State | 4 | 0 |
| Mike Kenn | 78 | LOT | 6-7 | 278 | 25 | Michigan | 16 | 16 |
| Fulton Kuykendall | 54 | LILB | 6-4 | 226 | 28 | UCLA | 16 | 16 |
| Jim Laughlin | 51 | ROLB | 6-1 | 219 | 23 | Ohio State | 14 | 7 |
| Mick Luckhurst | 18 | K | 6-1 | 180 | 23 | St. Cloud State; California | 16 | 0 |
| James Mayberry | 39 | RB | 5-11 | 210 | 24 | Colorado | 16 | 0 |
| Jeff Merrow | 75 | RDE | 6-4 | 250 | 28 | West Virginia | 11 | 10 |
| Russ Mikeska | 87 | TE | 6-3 | 225 | 26 | Texas A&M | 16 | 0 |
| Junior Miller | 80 | TE | 6-4 | 240 | 24 | Nebraska | 16 | 16 |
| Tom Moriarty | 45 | S | 6-0 | 183 | 28 | Bowling Green State | 9 | 0 |
| Mike Moroski | 15 | QB | 6-4 | 201 | 24 | UC Davis | 3 | 0 |
| Neal Musser | 53 | LB | 6-2 | 218 | 24 | Lees-McRae JC; North Carolina State | 7 | 0 |
| Tom Pridemore | 27 | FS | 5-11 | 186 | 25 | West Virginia | 16 | 16 |
| Al Richardson | 56 | LOLB | 6-3 | 222 | 24 | Georgia Tech | 16 | 16 |
| Bo Robinson | 33 | RB | 6-2 | 230 | 25 | West Texas A&M | 15 | 0 |
| Eric Sanders | 67 | ROT | 6-7 | 282 | 23 | Nevada-Reno | 16 | 6 |
| Dave Scott | 70 | LOG | 6-4 | 265 | 28 | Kansas | 14 | 14 |
| John Scully | 61 | C | 6-6 | 270 | 23 | Notre Dame | 16 | 0 |
| Don Smith | 65 | NT | 6-5 | 262 | 24 | Miami (Florida) | 16 | 16 |
| Reggie Smith | 16 | WR | 5-4 | 168 | 25 | North Carolina Central | 15 | 0 |
| Ray Strong | 25 | RB | 5-9 | 184 | 25 | Contra Costa JC; Nevada-Las Vegas | 16 | 0 |
| Matthew Teague | 72 | DE | 6-5 | 240 | 23 | Prairie View A&M | 11 | 0 |
| R.C. Thielemann | 68 | ROG | 6-4 | 257 | 26 | Arkansas | 16 | 16 |
| Jeff Van Note | 57 | C | 6-2 | 247 | 35 | Kentucky | 16 | 16 |
| Lyman White | 52 | ROLB | 6-0 | 217 | 22 | Louisiana State | 16 | 1 |
| Joel Williams | 58 | ROLB | 6-1 | 222 | 25 | Peru State; Wisconsin-La Crosse | 10 | 8 |
| Scott Woerner | 30 | CB-S | 6-0 | 195 | 23 | Georgia | 16 | 0 |
| Jeff Yeates | 79 | LDE | 6-3 | 252 | 30 | Boston College | 16 | 16 |
| Mike Zele | 63 | DT | 6-4 | 250 | 25 | Kent State | 14 | 0 |
| DRAFT LIST | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Overall | Player | Pos | College |
| 1 | 25 | Bobby Butler | DB | Florida State |
| 2 | 54 | Lyman White | LB | Louisiana State |
| 3 | 80 | Scott Woerner | DB | Georgia |
| 4 | 109 | John Scully | C | Notre Dame |
| 5 | 136 | Eric Sanders | T | Nevada-Reno |
| 6 | 164 | Harry Stanback | DT | North Carolina |
| 8 | 219 | Cliff Toney | DB | Auburn |
| 9 | 245 | Calvin Fance | RB | Rice |
| 10 | 274 | Bob Murphy | DB | Ohio State |
| 11 | 301 | Keith Chappelle | WR | Iowa |
| 12 | 330 | Mark McCants | DB | Temple |
| SCORING BY QUARTERS | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | OT | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 71 | 134 | 95 | 126 | 0 | 426 |
| Opponents Totals | 64 | 158 | 49 | 81 | 3 | 355 |
| TEAM STATS | TOP | 1st Downs | FDR | FDP | FDX | 3rd Down Efficiency | 4th Down Efficiency | PEN | PENY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 29:34 | 318 | 116 | 176 | 26 | 93/227 41.0% | / % | 90 | 940 |
| Opponents Totals | 30:26 | 303 | 94 | 172 | 37 | 73/218 33.5% | / % | 97 | 804 |
| SCORING | TD | X1 | X1A | PCT | FG | FGA | PCT | SAF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mick Luckhurst | 0 | 51 | 51 | 100.0 | 21 | 33 | 63.6 | 0 | 114 |
| Alfred Jenkins | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 78 | ||
| William Andrews | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 72 | ||
| Alfred Jackson | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | ||
| Lynn Cain | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | ||
| Wallace Francis | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | ||
| Junior Miller | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | ||
| Kenny Johnson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | ||
| Buddy Curry | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Fulton Kuykendall | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Tom Pridemore | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Joel Williams | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| (Team) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 52 | 51 | 52 | 98.1 | 21 | 33 | 63.6 | 0 | 426 |
| Opponents Totals | 43 | 41 | 43 | 95.3 | 18 | 29 | 62.1 | 1 | 355 |
| FIELD GOALS | MADE | ATT | PCT | BL | LG | 1-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mick Luckhurst | 21 | 33 | 63.6 | 0 | 47 | 1/2 | 7/7 | 8/12 | 5/11 | 0/1 |
| Team Totals | 21 | 33 | 63.6 | 0 | 47 | 1/2 | 7/7 | 8/12 | 5/11 | 0/1 |
| Opponents Totals | 18 | 29 | 62.1 | 0/0 | 8/10 | 3/9 | 7/9 | 0/1 |
| RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Andrews | 289 | 1301 | 4.5 | 29 | 10 |
| Lynn Cain | 156 | 542 | 3.5 | 35 | 4 |
| James Mayberry | 18 | 66 | 3.7 | 11 | 0 |
| Bo Robinson | 9 | 24 | 2.7 | 5 | 0 |
| Mike Moroski | 3 | 17 | 5.7 | 14 | 0 |
| Wallace Francis | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 8t | 1 |
| Ray Strong | 3 | 6 | 2.0 | 3 | 0 |
| Alfred Jackson | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 5 | 0 |
| Tony Daykin | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 |
| Steve Bartkowski | 11 | 2 | 0.2 | 5 | 0 |
| June Jones | 1 | -1 | -1.0 | -1 | 0 |
| John James | 1 | -7 | -7.0 | -7 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 495 | 1965 | 4.0 | 35 | 15 |
| Opponents Totals | 459 | 1666 | 3.6 | 43 | 10 |
| PASSING | ATT | COM | PCT | INC | YDS | Y/ATT | Y/COM | LG | TD | TD% | INT | INT% | TS | YL | NYP | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Bartkowski | 533 | 297 | 55.7 | 213 | 3829 | 7.2 | 12.9 | 70t | 30 | 5.6 | 23 | 4.3 | 37 | 287 | 3542 | 79.2 |
| Mike Moroski | 26 | 12 | 46.2 | 13 | 132 | 5.1 | 11.0 | 22 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 3.8 | 0 | 0 | 132 | 45.7 |
| June Jones | 3 | 2 | 66.7 | 1 | 25 | 8.3 | 12.5 | 14 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 92.4 |
| John James | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39.6 | ||
| Team Totals | 563 | 311 | 55.2 | 228 | 3986 | 7.1 | 12.8 | 70t | 30 | 5.3 | 24 | 4.3 | 37 | 287 | 3699 | 77.6 |
| Opponents Totals | 565 | 322 | 57.0 | 218 | 3927 | 7.0 | 12.2 | 80 | 30 | 5.3 | 25 | 4.4 | 29 | 239 | 3688 | 77.8 |
| RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Andrews | 81 | 735 | 9.1 | 70t | 2 |
| Alfred Jenkins | 70 | 1358 | 19.4 | 67 | 13 |
| Lynn Cain | 55 | 421 | 7.7 | 28 | 2 |
| Alfred Jackson | 37 | 604 | 16.3 | 49 | 6 |
| Junior Miller | 32 | 398 | 12.4 | 37 | 3 |
| Wallace Francis | 30 | 441 | 14.7 | 36 | 4 |
| James Mayberry | 3 | 4 | 1.3 | 6 | 0 |
| Russ Mikeska | 2 | 16 | 8.0 | 11 | 0 |
| Ray Strong | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 9 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 311 | 3986 | 12.8 | 70t | 30 |
| Opponents Totals | 322 | 3927 | 12.2 | 80 | 30 |
| INTERCEPTIONS | INT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Pridemore | 7 | 221 | 31.6 | 101t | 1 |
| Bobby Butler | 5 | 86 | 17.2 | 41 | 0 |
| Kenny Johnson | 3 | 35 | 11.7 | 23 | 0 |
| Earl Jones | 2 | 42 | 21.0 | 39 | 0 |
| Bob Glazebrook | 2 | 21 | 10.5 | 18 | 0 |
| Buddy Curry | 1 | 35 | 35.0 | 35t | 1 |
| Joel Williams | 1 | 25 | 25.0 | 25 | 0 |
| Fulton Kuykendall | 1 | 20 | 20.0 | 20t | 1 |
| Al Richardson | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 9 | 0 |
| Blane Gaison | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Neal Musser | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 25 | 494 | 19.8 | 101t | 3 |
| Opponents Totals | 24 | 301 | 12.5 | 94 | 0 |
| PUNTING | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | BL | TB | I20 | RYDS | NYDS | NET |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John James | 87 | 3543 | 40.7 | 62 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 577 | 2866 | 32.6 |
| Team Totals | 88 | 3543 | 40.3 | 62 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 577 | 2866 | 32.6 |
| Opponents Totals | 96 | 4050 | 42.2 | 66 | 0 | 11 | 17 | 383 | 3447 | 35.9 |
| PUNT RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scott Woerner | 33 | 16 | 278 | 8.4 | 38 | 0 |
| Reggie Smith | 12 | 3 | 99 | 8.3 | 53 | 0 |
| Kenny Johnson | 4 | 0 | 6 | 1.5 | 4 | 0 |
| Tom Pridemore | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 50 | 19 | 383 | 7.7 | 53 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 59 | 10 | 577 | 9.8 | 84t | 2 |
| KICKOFF RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reggie Smith | 47 | 0 | 1143 | 24.3 | 52 | 0 |
| Scott Woerner | 10 | 0 | 210 | 21.0 | 27 | 0 |
| Blane Gaison | 3 | 0 | 43 | 14.3 | 24 | 0 |
| James Mayberry | 2 | 0 | 23 | 11.5 | 15 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 62 | 0 | 1419 | 22.9 | 52 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 67 | 1286 | 19.2 | 67 | 0 |
| SACKS | NO | YDS |
|---|---|---|
| Al Richardson | 10.5 | |
| Don Smith | 7.0 | |
| Jeff Yeates | 4.5 | |
| Joel Williams | 3.0 | |
| Wilson Faumuina | 2.5 | |
| Bob Glazebrook | 1.5 | |
| Team Totals | 29.0 | 239.0 |
| Opponents Totals | 37.0 | 287.0 |
| FUMBLES | NO | LOST | OWN | OPP | REC | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Andrews | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Steve Bartkowski | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | -1 | 0 | |
| Lynn Cain | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Wilson Faumuina | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Wallace Francis | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Blane Gaison | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Glazebrook | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 0 |
| Alfred Jackson | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Alfred Jenkins | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Kenny Johnson | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 55 | 2 | |
| Mike Kenn | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Fulton Kuykendall | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Laughlin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| James Mayberry | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Tom Moriarty | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Pridemore | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 24 | 0 |
| Don Smith | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Reggie Smith | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ray Strong | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
| R.C. Thielemann | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Van Note | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -20 | 0 | |
| Joel Williams | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 57 | 1 |
| Scott Woerner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Yeates | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 31 | 18 | 13 | 21 | 34 | 139 | 4 |
| Opponents Totals | 43 | 21 | 18 | 17 | 35 | 0 |
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