1981 New England Patriots season

New England Patriots
1981 New England Patriots season
Owner	Billy Sullivan
Head coach	Ron Erhardt
General manager	Bucko Kilroy
Home field	Schaefer Stadium
Results
Record	2–14
Division place	T-4th AFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	G John Hannah
AP All-Pros	G John Hannah (1st team)

The 1981 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 12th season in the National Football League and 22nd overall.

Looking to improve on two consecutive winning seasons, including a 10-6 mark in 1980, the Patriots instead regressed significantly and ended the season with a record of two wins and fourteen losses, and finished tied for last in the AFC East Division with the Baltimore Colts, with whom they also tied for the worst record in the league. Their performance resulted in head coach Ron Erhardt losing his job at the end of the season.

The Patriots lost their first four games, and then ten of their last eleven, including the last nine games of the season. Eight of their losses were by margins of seven or fewer points; the largest margin of defeat was only 14 points. The Patriots were defeated in both the first and last games of the season by the Baltimore Colts; the Patriots' bookend losses proved to be Baltimore’s only two wins of the 1981 season. It was known that the loser of that last game would have the first pick in the 1982 NFL Draft, and the game was nicknamed “The Stupor Bowl.”^[1] With the Patriot loss, the team had the first pick, choosing University of Texas defensive end Kenneth Sims, an eventual draft “bust” as first overall pick in the NFL draft.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1981 New England Patriots draft
1	19	Brian Holloway *	Tackle	Stanford
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Staff

New England Patriots 1981 staff

Front Office

President – Billy Sullivan
Executive Vice President – Chuck Sullivan
General Manager – Bucko Kilroy
Assistant General Manager – Patrick Sullivan
Director of Player Development – Dick Steinberg
Director of College Scouting – Joe Mendes
Director of Pro Scouting – Bill McPeak

Head Coaches

Head Coach – Ron Erhardt

Offensive Coaches

Quarterbacks – Babe Parilli
Offensive Backfield – Bobby Grier
Receivers – Raymond Berry
Offensive Line – Jim Ringo

Defensive Coaches

Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line – Fritz Shurmur
Linebackers – Rick Lantz
Defensive Backs – Dick Roach

Special Teams Coaches

Special Teams – Gino Cappelletti

Roster

**1981 New England Patriots roster**

	Quarterbacks 12 Matt Cavanaugh 14 Steve Grogan 17 Tom Owen Running backs 44 Don Calhoun 33 Tony Collins 39 Sam Cunningham 43 Vagas Ferguson 32 Andy Johnson 30 Mosi Tatupu Wide receivers 29 Harold Jackson 86 Stanley Morgan 88 Carlos Pennywell 82 Ken Toler 83 Don Westbrook Tight ends 87 Lin Dawson 80 Don Hasselbeck		Offensive linemen 58 Pete Brock C 75 Bob Cryder T 73 John Hannah G 76 Brian Holloway T 74 Shelby Jordan G 67 Bill Lenkaitis C 77 Garry Puetz G 62 Dwight Wheeler T Defensive linemen 85 Julius Adams DE 64 Richard Bishop DE 63 Mark Buben DT 71 Ray Hamilton DT 72 Mel Lunsford DE 78 Tony McGee DE		Linebackers 55 Don Blackmon 59 Mike Hawkins 52 Steve King 53 Bill Matthews 57 Steve Nelson 56 Rod Shoate 54 John Zamberlin Defensive backs 26 Raymond Clayborn CB 48 Tim Fox FS 40 Mike Haynes CB 38 Roland James SS 22 Keith Lee CB 34 Prentice McCray SS 25 Rick Sanford SS Special teams 3 Rich Camarillo P 1 John Smith K		Reserve lists 87 Preston Brown WR (IR) 35 Allan Clark RB (IR) 50 Larry McGrew LB (IR) 34 Rick Villella DB (IR) 61 Ron Wooten G (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics

Season summary

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 6, 1981	Baltimore Colts	L 28–29	49,572
2	September 13, 1981	at Philadelphia Eagles	L 3–13	71,089
3	September 21, 1981	Dallas Cowboys	L 21–35	60,311
4	September 27, 1981	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 21–27	53,344
5	October 4, 1981	Kansas City Chiefs	W 33–17	55,931
6	October 11, 1981	at New York Jets	L 24–28	55,093
7	October 18, 1981	Houston Oilers	W 38–10	60,474
8	October 25, 1981	at Washington Redskins	L 22–24	50,394
9	November 1, 1981	at Oakland Raiders	L 17–27	44,246
10	November 8, 1981	Miami Dolphins	L 27–30	60,436
11	November 15, 1981	New York Jets	L 6–17	45,342
12	November 22, 1981	at Buffalo Bills	L 17–20	71,593
13	November 29, 1981	St. Louis Cardinals	L 20–27	39,946
14	December 6, 1981	at Miami Dolphins	L 14–24	50,421
15	December 13, 1981	Buffalo Bills	L 10–19	42,549
16	December 20, 1981	at Baltimore Colts	L 21–23	17,073

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Miami Dolphins⁽²⁾	11	4	1	.719	5–2–1	8–3–1	345	275	W4
New York Jets⁽⁴⁾	10	5	1	.656	6–1–1	8–5–1	355	287	W2
Buffalo Bills⁽⁵⁾	10	6	0	.625	6–2	9–3	311	276	L1
Baltimore Colts	2	14	0	.125	2–6	2–10	259	533	W1
New England Patriots	2	14	0	.125	0–8	2–10	322	370	L9

References

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