1981 Miami Dolphins season

The 1981 Miami Dolphins season was the 16th year of existence for the Miami Dolphins franchise and 12th in the National Football League (NFL). With the retirement of Bob Griese, not much was expected out of the Dolphins. The Dolphins Defense became known as the Killer Bees because of the number of players whose last name began with the letter B; Bill Barnett, Bob Baumhauer, Lyle Blackwood, Kim Bokamper, and Bob Brudzinski anchored a strong team. They finished 11-4-1, as Don Shula reached a milestone by winning his 200th game of his coaching career. In the Divisional Playoffs against the San Diego Chargers the Dolphins fell behind 24-0 early in front of a sold out crowd at the Orange Bowl. With time running out in the first half, the Dolphins desperately needed a score to get back in the game. Out of nowhere the Dolphins ran the old schoolyard hook and lateral play to success. On the play, Quarterback Don Strock threw a pass over the middle to WR Duriel Harris, who lateraled to HB Tony Nathan, who ran the ball in for a touchdown. The play sparked the Dolphins, who came back and took a lead in the 4th Quarter. However, the Killer Bees could not contain Chargers QB Dan Fouts, who tied the game and forced overtime, where the Chargers won the game on a Rolf Benirschke field goal in the 14th minute of overtime. If it hadn't been for the player's strike of the following season (where they went 7-2, which would've put them at the top of the AFC East), this would've been the first of five consecutive AFC East titles for the Dolphins.

1981 Miami Dolphins season
Head coachDon Shula
Home fieldOrange Bowl
Results
Record11–4–1
Division place1st AFC East
Playoff finishLost Divisional Playoffs
(vs. Chargers) 38–41 (OT)
Pro Bowlers2
DT Bob Baumhower
G Ed Newman
The Dolphins facing the Chargers in the AFC Divisional Playoff known as the "Epic in Miami".

As of the 2022 season, this marks the last time the Dolphins played in a tie game.

Offseason
  • July 1, 1981: Linebacker Rusty Chambers, the Miami Dolphins leading tackler in 1978 and 1979, died in an automobile accident. [1]

NFL draft
Main article: 1981 NFL draft
1981 Miami Dolphins draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 13 David Overstreet  Running back Oklahoma
2 56 Andra Franklin *  Running back Nebraska
4 84 Sam Greene  Wide receiver UNLV
4 96 Brad Wright  Quarterback New Mexico
5 126 Ken Poole  Defensive end Louisiana–Monroe
5 138 Tommy Vigorito  Running back Virginia
6 152 Mack Moore  Defensive end Texas A&M
6 154 Fulton Walker  Defensive back West Virginia
7 179 Mike Daum  Offensive tackle Cal Poly
8 208 William Judson  Defensive back South Carolina State
9 235 John Noonan  Wide receiver Nebraska
10 261 Steve Folsom  Tight end Utah
11 291 Jim Jensen  Wide receiver Boston University
12 318 John Alford  Defensive tackle South Carolina State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[2]

Personnel

Staff
1981 Miami Dolphins staff
Front office

Head coaches

  • Head coach – Don Shula

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams – Steve Crosby, Carl Taseff
  • Punting – Tom Keane


Roster
1981 Miami Dolphins final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists
  • 35 Nick Giaquinto RB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 38 Steve Howell FB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 34 Woody Bennett FB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 45 Ed Taylor CB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)


Rookies in italics
 45 active

Regular season

The Dolphins won the AFC East title behind second-year quarterback David Woodley and a running attack that managed 2,173 yards and 18 touchdowns. In their eight divisional games they swept the Colts and Patriots but split with Buffalo and went winless against a resurgent Jets squad; they tied the Jets 28–28 at Miami then lost at Shea Stadium 16–15. They won their last four games of the season to finish 11–4–1.

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 6 at St. Louis Cardinals W 20–7 1–0 Busch Memorial Stadium 50,351
2 September 10 Pittsburgh Steelers W 30–10 2–0 Miami Orange Bowl 75,059
3 September 20 at Houston Oilers W 16–10 3–0 Houston Astrodome 47,379
4 September 27 at Baltimore Colts W 31–28 4–0 Memorial Stadium 41,630
5 October 4 New York Jets T 28–28 (OT) 4–0–1 Miami Orange Bowl 68,723
6 October 12 at Buffalo Bills L 21–31 4–1–1 Rich Stadium 78,576
7 October 18 Washington Redskins W 13–10 5–1–1 Miami Orange Bowl 47,367
8 October 25 at Dallas Cowboys L 27–28 5–2–1 Texas Stadium 64,221
9 November 1 Baltimore Colts W 27–10 6–2–1 Miami Orange Bowl 46,061
10 November 8 at New England Patriots W 30–27 (OT) 7–2–1 Schaefer Stadium 60,436
11 November 15 Oakland Raiders L 17–33 7–3–1 Miami Orange Bowl 61,777
12 November 22 at New York Jets L 15–16 7–4–1 Shea Stadium 59,962
13 November 30 Philadelphia Eagles W 13–10 8–4–1 Miami Orange Bowl 67,797
14 December 6 New England Patriots W 24–14 9–4–1 Miami Orange Bowl 50,421
15 December 13 at Kansas City Chiefs W 17–7 10–4–1 Arrowhead Stadium 57,407
16 December 19 Buffalo Bills W 16–6 11–4–1 Miami Orange Bowl 72,956

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

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

Playoffs

The Dolphins returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence, hosting the "Air Coryell" Chargers in one of the greatest playoff games in NFL history.

Round Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Attendance
Divisional January 2, 1982 San Diego Chargers (3) L 38–41 (OT) 0–1 Miami Orange Bowl 73,735

References
  1. 100 Things Dolphins Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Armando Salguero, Triumph Books, Chicago, 2020, ISBN 978-1-62937-722-3, p.185
  2. "1981 Miami Dolphins draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
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