Menu

1980 NFL

The 1980 Oakland Raiders Wild-Card Super Bowl Run

, , , , , ,

The Oakland Raiders were a regular part of the NFL elite, winning the Super Bowl in 1976 with John Madden at coach and Ken Stabler at quarterback. But they missed the playoffs in 1978, Madden’s final year, and again in 1979 under new coach Tom Flores. The 1980 Oakland Raiders made a major change, trading away Stabler, and they made an improbable run all the way back to the top of the NFL.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

The Raiders dealt Stabler to the Houston Oilers in a swap of quarterbacks, getting Dan Pastorini back in return. The Raiders and Oilers would continue to be trading partners in a less dramatic, but more significant deal, when Oakland acquired running back Kenny King. And in mid-season, the Raiders traded veteran tight end Dave Casper to Houston.

King stepped up and made the Pro Bowl, as did 34-year-old left tackle Art Shell, a future Hall of Famer and head coach of this franchise. Mark van Eeghen, the big fullback, ran for over 800 yards.

The receiving corps was balanced between speedy wideout Cliff Branch and possession receiver Bob Chandler. Gene Upshaw was no longer a Pro Bowler, but the Hall of Famer and future head of the NFL Players Union was still reliable at left tackle.

Defensively, Oakland was led by ballhawking corner Lester Hayes, renowned for lathering himself up with stickum at a time when this was legal. Hayes intercepted 13 passes and won Defensive Player of the Year. Outside linebacker Ted Hendricks was another 1st-team All-NFL talent and a rookie named Matt Millen (a much better inside linebacker than he was as a GM or TV analyst in future years) joined the team. And to win the field position battle, Ray Guy was a Pro Bowl punter.

Oakland proved to be a balanced team. The defense ranked 10th in the NFL points allowed and the offense, while probably having less individual talent and going through instability at quarterback, would end up seventh in the league in scoring.

Pastorini’s career as a Raider got off to a good start in Kansas City, throwing for 319 yards and twice hooking up with Chandler for touchdowns as Oakland got a 27-14 win over a mediocre opponent.

The next game was at San Diego, the defending AFC West champs, with a feared passing attack led by Dan Fouts. Oakland picked off Fouts five times, but also allowed 387 yards through the air. Late in the game, trailing 24-17, Pastorini was knocked out backup Jim Plunkett came into the game. He threw the tying touchdown pass, but Oakland lost in overtime.

Pastorini returned at home against the Redskins, but did not play well, throwing three interceptions. The running game bailed Oakland out against a subpar team, with King gaining 136 yards and the Raiders escaped 24-21. But another shaky performance the following week against Buffalo, one marked by five turnovers, came against an opponent good enough to capitalize. Oakland lost 24-7 and their only touchdown came when Hayes returned an interception for a score.

Plunkett was in the lineup for a home game with Kansas City, but it was a complete disaster. He threw five interceptions and after trailing 31-3, the quarterback threw 52 times. Oakland scored a couple meaningless touchdowns to make the game respectable, but they were 2-3 and there was no sign that this was a team ready to return to the playoffs, much less win a Super Bowl.

The season was at a crucial point, with a home game against the Chargers next, followed by a Monday Night road trip to the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. The way things were going, everything was set up for Oakland to be buried early.

But instead, the Raiders turned their season around and Plunkett wrested the quarterback job from Pastorini, never to give it back. The game with the Chargers was another exciting, back-and-forth affair as the Oakland defense and San Diego offense traded shots. Fouts threw for 388 yards, but the Raiders forced six turnovers.

Kenny King was the difference. He ran for 138 yards, most of them on an 89-yard touchdown jaunt that broke a 24-24 tie in the fourth quarter. Oakland added one more touchdown to get a huge win.

Pittsburgh was going to miss the playoffs this season, but they were very much in the mix for a three-peat on October 20, and Oakland came to town as a (+10) underdog. Plunkett was efficient, completing 13/21 passes with no interceptions. He also made big plays, throwing for 247 yards. Branch caught five passes for 123 yards, two touchdowns and the Raiders were in command in a 45-34 win.

The offense bogged down a bit at home against Seattle, an AFC West rival prior to 2002. They only had three field goals in the third quarter, but a strong defensive effort kept Oakland ahead 9-0. Then Plunkett unleashed for three touchdown passes to Chandler and the game ended a 33-14 rout. The Raider running attack then overpowered an average Miami Dolphins team, gaining 192 yards in a tough 16-10 home win.

Special teams delivered the next two victories, as Oakland continued to take advantage of a soft spot on the schedule. A home game with Cincinnati was sloppy both ways, with a combined nine turnovers. But a 90-yard kickoff return from Arthur Whittington was the difference in a 28-17 win. The Raiders trailed in Seattle 17-7 before Hendricks scored off a blocked punt and Oakland ultimately pulled out a 19-17 win on Monday Night.

The schedule would not be easy the rest of the way. Oakland had to play two of the NFC’s top teams, the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. Both games with the Denver Broncos were still ahead, and though Denver was mediocre this year, finishing 8-8, they were good enough to cause problems for an archrival. Only the season finale at the lowly New York Giants looked like a soft spot.

Oakland’s trip to Philadelphia on November 23 was a defensive war. Trailing 3-0 in the fourth quarter, Plunkett found Branch on an 86-yard touchdown strike, but Philadelphia rallied for a touchdown of their own and the Raiders lost 10-7. Oakland was 8-4 and tied with San Diego for first amidst a very balanced AFC landscape.

Another defensive battle followed at home against the Broncos on Monday Night. Oakland did nothing on offense, but they took care of the ball, while forcing six turnovers in a 9-3 win. Even so, over two games, this was an offense that had suddenly only produced one long touchdown pass. And that finally caught up them the following week when Dallas visited. This time, the Raiders turned it over four times and they lost 19-13.

Oakland caught a break when San Diego was upset in Washington, and the race stayed tied at 9-5. The downside was that the Chargers had control of the tiebreaker situation, although an upside was that the Raiders were in good shape to at least get back in the playoffs.

A tough game at Denver followed, and Oakland made yet another big play defensively, getting a 58-yard interception return from Burgess Owens. Plunkett got loosened up, completing 13/21 passes for 213 yards, including a pair of touchdowns to Chandler. The 24-21 win clinched a wild-card berth, though San Diego continued to hold serve in the division race.

The Raider defense played a little soft in New York, allowing 185 rushing yards, but it was time for the offense to step up and win a game. That’s what happened, as van Eeghen powered his way for 115 yards, while Plunkett went 12/22 for 164 yards. The 33-17 win ensured Oakland would at least host the wild-card game, and they kept the pressure on San Diego, who hosted Pittsburgh on Monday Night.

San Diego won, and it set up a playoff game the following week that was all-too appropriate, given how the season began. The Houston Oilers were coming to town, with Stabler and Casper coming home.

No wild-card team had ever won the Super Bowl, and as of 1978, that task had been made harder when the playoffs expanded and moved wild-cards into today’s first round of playoff games. Maybe it’s easy to say with the benefit of hindsight, but with every AFC postseason qualifier having finished the year at 11-5, 1980 looked tailor-made for someone to get hot out of this round.

The Raiders got a break on the first play of the game, with Houston’s great running back Earl Campbell, the league’s leading rusher, fumbled. Oakland recovered a kicked a field goal. Campbell later ran for a touchdown, but Plunkett flipped a one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Todd Christensen. The game was 10-7 at the half and remained so into the fourth quarter.

Oakland defined its passing game with the deep ball in this era and Plunkett threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Whittington to stretch the lead to 17-7. After another field goal, Hayes administered the dagger, intercepting a Stabler pass deep in Houston territory and taking it twenty yards for the clinching score in a 27-7 win.

The key to the game had been defense. Campbell rushed for 91 yards, not a bad total, but less than what Houston needed from a back that carried a disproportionate share of the load. The Raiders had also won the turnover battle 3-1, enough to carry them on a day when Plunkett only went 8-for-23

Frigid conditions awaited in Cleveland the next week on early Sunday afternoon. The winds were blowing at 21 mph off of Lake Erie and the temps were (-20) with the windchill. The field was frozen solid. This worked to Oakland’s advantage, since the Browns had the MVP of the league in quarterback Brian Sipe.

Plunkett made the game’s first big mistake in the second quarter, throwing a Pick-6. A missed extra point kept the Raiders within six points and van Eeghen bulled over for a touchdown that gave them the lead at halftime.

The Oakland defense was taking advantage of the weather conditions. Sipe still threw 40 times, but he only completed 13 of them. Hayes intercepted two passes and on the frozen turf, the Browns missed a couple field goals and messed up the snap on another. But they also made a couple and took a 12-7 lead in the third quarter before van Eeghen again muscled his way in. The Raiders clung to a 14-12 lead when Cleveland drove to the 14-yard line with less than a minute to play.

In normal weather conditions, the Browns surely just play for a field goal. But with the frozen field having caused three botched field goals and a missed extra point, they felt it worthwhile to at least try a pass into the end zone. That suited the aggressive Oakland secondary just fine and Mike Davis intercepted Sipe’s pass to preserve the win.

Now it was time for Round 3 with the Chargers. Each of the regular season meetings had been tied 24-24 in the second half before someone stepped up. And though the Raiders had to go on the road, at least the weather was just a bit warmer in San Diego than it had been in Cleveland.

Oakland had the ball on their own 35-yard line when Plunkett went deep to tight end Raymond Chester. The ball batted around off a few fingertips before Chester stayed with it, made the catch and ended up in the end zone.

San Diego answered with a score of their own, but the Raiders exploded and rattled off three straight touchdowns. Plunkett was both efficient and spectacular, completing 14/28 for 261 yards and no interceptions on the game, and it looked like Oakland might have an easy day with a 28-7 lead.

But Fouts didn’t give up and he threw for 336 yards of his own. San Diego scored a touchdown before the half and drove deep into the Oakland red zone in the third quarter. The Raider defense came up with a big stop, forced a field goal and kept the lead at eleven points, but the Chargers roared right back with a touchdown that cut the lead to 28-24.

The Raider offense responded, and van Eeghen rushed for 85 yards. But they missed a chance to put it away, with two drives to the red zone ending in field goals. In between, the Chargers had a deep drive of their own stall with a field goal. The score was 34-27 when Oakland got the ball back with 6:52 left.

The Oakland defense was exhausted and implored the offense to finish the job. That’s exactly what happened. The offensive line might have struggled in pass protection today, allowing six sacks, but they controlled the trenches when it mattered most. Oakland kept the ball the rest of the game and ran the clock out. They were going back to the Super Bowl.

A rematch with Philadelphia was up and the Raiders were a (+3) underdog. But Oakland entered the game loose and confident, while the Eagles were tense and after the excitement of the AFC playoffs, this game seemed over from the moment it started.

Linebacker Rod Martin intercepted the first pass of Philly quarterback Ron Jaworski, and set up a 2-yard TD pass from Plunkett to Branch. It was the first of a Super Bowl record three interceptions for Martin. Later in the first quarter, Plunkett found King down the sideline for an 80-yard touchdown pass. It was the longest TD pass in Super Bowl history, though unlike Martin’s record, that one has since been broken.

The game was 14-3 at half, and another touchdown pass to Branch, this one from 29 yards out, all but sealed it. Philadelphia briefly cut the lead to 24-10 in the fourth quarter, but a 35-yard field goal from Chris Bahr eliminated all doubt.

Plunkett finished 13/21 for 261 yards, three touchdown passes and no interceptions. He was named Super Bowl MVP in the 27-10 win, completing an improbable rise from NFL bust (a former Heisman Trophy winner at Stanford and #1 overall draft pick, he had washed out in New England) to backup to hero. Even better was that his comeback story didn’t end in New Orleans—he continued to have success with the Raiders and led them to another Super Bowl title in 1983.

Having said all that, I do feel Martin would have been a more appropriate choice for game MVP. The Raider defense was really the big story of the game and the three interceptions were historic. The fact one of them came on the first pass clearly set the tone. But whomever the MVP was didn’t matter to the silver-n-black. The 1980 Oakland Raiders were back on top and had become the first team to win four games in the postseason.

1980 San Diego Chargers Just Miss The Super Bowl Dream

, , , , , ,

The 1980 San Diego Chargers may have been the best team in the franchise’s “Air Coryell” era, where head coach Don Coryell, with a big assist from offensive coordinator Joe Gibbs, produced an explosive offense on the cutting edge of the NFL’s relatively new pass-friendly rules. They went all-in to win the Super Bowl, but defensive problems cut the dream short.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 


Future Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Fouts was at the controls, and he threw for 4,715 yards and 30 touchdowns, both very high numbers by the standards of 1980. He also threw 24 interceptions, which, while not unheard of 1980, even for good quarterbacks, was still on the high end.

Fouts was a Pro Bowler and he had three 1st-team All-NFL targets. John Jefferson and Charlie Joiner were each 1,000-yard receivers, as was Kellen Winslow at tight end. The offensive line wasn’t great, and the team had problems running the football, but 33-year-old left guard Doug Wilkerson still made the Pro Bowl. San Diego would later seek to address its running game issues with a big midseason trade.

The offense ranked fourth in the NFL in points scored. It was defense that was the issue and specifically in the back seven. The Chargers had talent in the front four. Gary Johnson and Louis Kelcher were both Pro Bowlers at defensive end—Johnson was 1st-team All-NFL—and young Fred Dean was the same at defensive end. But the problems at linebacker and in the secondary resulted in a unit that ranked 18th in the NFL in points allowed.

San Diego opened up the season at Seattle, a division rival in the AFC West prior to 2002 and Fouts opened up. He threw for four touchdowns and any notions of problems with the running game and defense were nowhere to be found. John Cappelletti ran for 112 yards, the Seahawks only rushed for 47 and the final score was 34-13.

A home date with the Oakland Raiders was next. The Raiders, the division’s standard bearer through the most of the 1970s, had slipped and missed the playoffs two straight years, though they were never really bad. This was going to be a big comeback year for them, and the Week 2 game in San Diego was outstanding.

Fouts threw for 387 yards, hitting Jefferson and Winslow nine times apiece. The Chargers should have won handily, but they turned the ball over seven times, gave up a defensive touchdown and allowed backup quarterback Jim Plunkett to lead a drive for the tying touchdown at 24-24. The game went to overtime where San Diego finally won it.

The good times continued with two more AFC West wins, at Denver and at Kansas City. The defense picked off six passes in Denver, two by Glen Edwards who brought one back to the house in a 30-13 win. Fouts threw a pair of second quarter touchdown passes to Winslow in KC to get control of that game and the Bolts won 24-7.

Even though San Diego was 4-0, it was obvious they needed better offensive balance and to that end they swung a trade with the lowly New Orleans Saints. Chuck Muncie, an explosive Pro Bowl talent at running back—albeit with a penchant for fumbling the ball—was acquired for a second-round draft pick. Why the relatively low price tag? Muncie had off-the-field issues pertaining to drug use and the Saints were on their way to the worst record in the NFL anyway.

Muncie had no impact in his first game back, a tough 26-24 home loss to Buffalo. The Bills were on their way to an AFC East title and the inability to run the ball meant San Diego couldn’t hold a 24-12 lead in the fourth quarter. The following week in Oakland another loss came and this time it was the rush defense. The Chargers allowed 217 rush yards. Fouts did everything he could to overcome it, throwing for 388 yards, almost all to his Big Three of Jefferson, Joiner and Winslow. But again, the fourth quarter was the killer as a game tied 24-24 ended up in a 38-24 defeat.

A home game with a bad team in the New York Giants was a good antidote for the two straight losses, and Fouts opened up with 444 yards in a 44-7 loss. It set up a Sunday Night game in Dallas—prime-time games outside of Monday Night were a rare treat for fans in 1980, and with Dallas continuing to be an elite team under head coach Tom Landry, this matchup was a bigger treat than most.

San Diego trailed 7-3 before Fouts hit Jefferson on a 58-yard touchdown pass. A defensive touchdown put the Chargers ahead 17-7. But the flip side of this offense always staying on the attack was high turnovers and Fouts threw four interceptions. For the third time in four weeks, San Diego came undone in the second half against a good team, losing 42-31.

If we fast-forward the clock one year, San Diego traveled to Cincinnati for an AFC Championship Game in frigid temperatures. The weather in Cincinnati on November 2 this season was a little more manageable and so were the Bengals, who finished 6-10. The Chargers took care of the football this time, jumped out to an early 17-0 lead and coasted home, 31-14.

San Diego was a nine-point favorite at home against Denver and Muncie had his best game to date, running for 115 yards. But Air Coryell was grounded in this game. A couple drives to the red zone ended up in field goals, the mediocre Broncos hung around and pulled a 20-13 upset. The Chargers dragged the hangover through the first quarter at home against the Chiefs a week later, trailing 7-0. Finally, San Diego awakened, got 30 first downs and beat KC 20-7.

The popularity of the Chargers, with their innovative passing offense, could be seen by yet another prime-time date outside the Monday Night window. On Thursday they went to Miami. The Dolphins were the defending AFC East champs, but on their way to a mediocre season in 1980. But this game would prove to be a foreshadowing of an epic playoff battle the two teams would have in 1981.

Fouts threw three touchdown passes, the game went back and forth until kicker Rolf Benirschke won it in overtime, 27-24, with a short field goal. On Sunday, Oakland lost in Philadelphia. It meant the Chargers and Raiders were tied atop the AFC West at 8-4, with the rest of the division in the rearview mirror.

It was now San Diego’s turn to play Philadelphia, the team that would ultimately win the NFC crown. This game took place out west. After a season where the Chargers constantly struggled against good teams, they stepped it up with a strong outing to start the stretch drive. Fouts hit Winslow on a pair of touchdown passes, the defense shut down the Eagle run game and San Diego jumped out a 19-0 lead, before holding on to win 22-21. Oakland held serve and the race remained tied.

A road trip to struggling Washington should have marked another easy win. The Redskins were going to be in the market for a head coach soon and though they man they would find was in the San Diego coaches’ booth, it couldn’t have been based on anything that happened in this game. Fouts threw an early Pick-6, threw five interceptions total and the Chargers were beaten badly 40-17. Fortunately, Oakland also lost.

San Diego hosted lowly Seattle on Saturday in the season’s penultimate week and Muncie ran for two touchdowns, while Fouts threw for 339 yards in a 21-14 win. The victory wasn’t impressive, but it was a divisional win. The Chargers held the tiebreaker on the Raiders, and still controlled their destiny for the AFC West title after Oakland won on Sunday.

The Chargers’ season finale would be a Monday Night home date with Pittsburgh. The Steelers were the two-time defending Super Bowl champs, and San Diego-Pittsburgh was the AFC Championship Game everyone had anticipated in 1979 before the Chargers were upset in the playoffs. Undoubtedly ABC, who televised MNF, had big dreams when this game appeared on the schedule.

Pittsburgh faded and was out of playoff contention, so those dreams were shot, but the game would still mean something to San Diego. They had their playoff berth secure, but when Oakland won on Sunday, the Chargers needed to win to secure the AFC West. In fact, the stakes were even higher—in a balanced AFC where all five playoff teams ultimately finished 11-5, a San Diego win gave them the #1 seed. A loss put them on the road for the wild-card game.

San Diego had red-zone problems in the first half with three good drives resulting in field goals and that kept the game close, at 9-3. With the lead at 16-10 in the third quarter, the Chargers again settled for a short field goal. But they were controlling the flow of play and Fouts went 21/37 for 308 yards and no interceptions. Winslow caught ten passes for 171 yards. Muncie rushed for 115 yards and when he scored a fourth quarter touchdown for a 16-point lead, the game was secure.

The Chargers won 26-17, had their second straight AFC West title and ensured the road to the Super Bowl went through San Diego.

Two weeks later, Buffalo came in for the AFC divisional playoffs. Even though the Bills had won here in October, they were playing with a hobbled quarterback in Joe Ferguson and the Chargers were a (-6) favorite.

San Diego drove to the 5-yard line, but had to settle for a field goal, and then Buffalo took over the second quarter, with two touchdowns. The Chargers were in a 14-3 hole at half. Fouts found Joiner on a short touchdown pass to put the team back in the game. San Diego began driving for the lead score and reached the 5-yard line, but again had to settle for three points.

It’s easy to oversimplify, but while the acquisition of Muncie made opponents respect the run more, the Chargers continued to have problems in areas where the run game should have mattered most.

But Fouts and his Big Three could cover for a lot of sins. A big defensive play didn’t hurt either, as the Chargers came up with an interception inside their own 10-yard line when the Bills were driving for a lockup touchdown. With 2:08 left, San Diego reached midfield. Fouts threw over the middle and found one his under-the-radar targets, Ron Smith. Touchdown. San Diego escaped 20-14.

Oakland had won the wild-card game and then held off the Cleveland Browns in a thriller. It set up Round 3 of Chargers-Raiders, this time with a Super Bowl trip at stake. It wasn’t San Diego’s day, a fact demonstrated early when an Oakland pass was tipped several times before ending up as a touchdown.

The Chargers fell behind 28-7 in the second quarter before Fouts brought them storming back to within 28-24. The rally might have tied the game, but a drive inside the 10-yard line ended up in yet another field goal. Fouts was great, throwing for 336 yards and the defense recorded six sacks. But Oakland otherwise did what they wanted offensively and they held on to win 34-27.

San Diego was an explosive team and a very good team in 1980, but it’s hard not to feel a sense of disappointment. This was the first of two straight AFC title game losses, and the one they got on their homefield. The season was a clear success, but losing a conference championship at home to your hated rival, who goes on to win the Super Bowl, leaves a bad taste. Air Coryell never did get to a Super Bowl, much less win it, and the franchise still looks for its first title today.

The 1980 Dallas Cowboys Start The Post-Staubach Era

, , , , , ,

The 1980 Dallas Cowboys represented a new era in franchise history. Legendary quarterback Roger Staubach retired after the 1979 season and Danny White took over. The long-time understudy proved he was more than capable of being the leading man, and even though White didn’t get the Cowboys back to the Super Bowl, they remained in the NFL elite.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Dallas was synonymous with winning and with playoff football in those days under head coach Tom Landry. They were just two years removed from back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, including a 1977 championship. The 1980 team kept the winning going, and even without Staubach, they did it on the strength of the most potent offense in the league.

The left side of the offensive line, Pat Donovan and Herbert Scott were each in the Pro Bowl and they lead the way for Tony Dorsett to gain nearly 1,200 yards on the ground. Tony Hill was the top receiver, going over 1,000 yards.

White threw for nearly 3,300 yards, with a 28/25 TD-INT ratio—while that interception total was high, even given the standards of the era, it wasn’t unacceptable, the way it would be today.

Overseeing the offense was coordinator Dan Reeves, soon to be John Elway’s mentor in Denver. This Cowboy offense was truly outstanding work—they’d had other units that were more talented, to say nothing of the quarterback change, but still scored more points than anyone else in the NFL.

It was enough to cover for a defense that was still pretty good—ranking 13th in points allowed—but definitely on the decline from its halcyon days of 1977. Dallas had Pro Bowlers at defensive tackle, in Randy White, and middle linebacker, with Bob Breunig, but age was catching up at other spots. Most notably with defensive end Harvey Martin and strong safety Charlie Waters.

The 1979 regular season had ended with Dallas beating the Washington Redskins in come-from-behind fashion to both win the NFC East and knock the Redskins out of the playoffs. The league put the two archrivals on the Monday Night stage to open the season. The ‘Skins had a tough year in front of them and it started on this night. The Cowboys came into RFK, and the combo of Dorsett, Ron Springs and James Jones ran for 177 yards in a 17-3 win.

A second straight road trip to Denver didn’t go quite as well, with an early 17-0 deficit and a 41-20 defeat. Dallas came home to face Tampa Bay. Though the Bucs would finish the season 5-10-1, from the perspective of Week 3, they were still the team who had reached the NFC Championship Game in 1979. Dallas again fell behind, this time 17-7, and fans couldn’t be blamed for wondering if this whole Danny White thing was going to work out.

White would turn it around though, hitting Billy Joe Dupree on a pair of short touchdown passes, and completing 24/33 passes for 244 yards. Dorsett ran for over 100 yards and the Cowboys won 28-17. White continued to be sharp the next two weeks against bad opponents. He was 16/20 for 217 yards in a 28-7 road win over Green Bay, and then went over the top for two touchdown passes against the Giants—46 yards to Hill and 29 to Butch Johnson—to lead an easy 24-3 home win.

Dallas hosted the San Francisco 49ers on October 12. One year later, this two teams would be the class of the NFC and play one of the great conference championship games of all time. The 49ers weren’t there yet, as the young Joe Montana continued to take some lumps in the learning process. He and his team took a lot of lumps in this game.

White threw for 239 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. Dorsett and Springs led a rushing attack than ran for 234 yards. And in the most mind-boggling stat of all, Dallas forced ten turnovers while committing none of their own. The final score? How about 59-14.

The principal rival in the NFC East this year was the Philadelphia Eagles, who had made the playoffs as a wild card each of the previous two years. The Eagles were playing well again in 1980 and had enough respect to be a three-point favorite over the Cowboys when the teams played an early Sunday afternoon game in Philly. The Eagles showed that respect was earned, shutting down the Cowboys, intercepting White three times and beating the 17-10.

Sunday Night games were a rarity at this time, and the October 26 prime-time game was a marquee matchup. Dallas was going to host the San Diego Chargers, whose passing offense was considered the most explosive in the NFL. The Chargers also had an offensive coordinator who would become a nemesis of the Cowboys, that being Joe Gibbs—one year away from getting the head coaching job in Washington.

Dallas fell behind 17-7, but the defense was again forcing turnovers, collecting seven in all. White threw a touchdown pass to Johnson to get the Cowboys back into the game and the rushing attack got rolling, producing 198 yards in all. Dallas rattled off four unanswered touchdowns in the second half and won 42-31.

The St. Louis Cardinals were a divisional foe at this time, joining the NFC East’s four current teams in the alignment that existed prior to 2002. The Cardinals weren’t very good, but they led 17-13 in the fourth quarter and were driving, when Dallas defensive back Dennis Thurman intercepted a pass and took it 78 yards the other way. Dallas again fell behind, 24-20, before White threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Hill to survive the road trip.

But another shaky performance on the road against a bad NFC East team the next week had a different ending. White regressed badly in the Meadowlands, throwing five interceptions against the Giants. It negated a brilliant 183-yard outing from Dorsett and Dallas lost in overtime, 38-35, to the worst team in the NFC East. They were now 7-3 and two games back of the high-flying Eagles.

Dallas was in the midst of a run of divisional games against shaky opponents, none of whom would win more than six games in 1980. St. Louis made the return trip to the Big D and the Cowboys continued to play down to the competition.

They dug themselves a 14-0 hole before turning it into a 31-21 win. Dorsett ran for 122 yards, and Hill caught seven passes for 126 yards. Then they trailed Washington at home 10-7, a game the Cowboys were a (-12) home favorite. Linebacker Larry Cole pulled this one out, with a 43-yard interception return to secure the 14-10 win.

After four straight mediocre performances, the team’s traditional Thanksgiving Day feast was what they needed. Dallas stomped lowly Seattle 51-17 and by the end of the weekend they had pulled back to within a game of Philadelphia in the NFC East.

A big game at Oakland was next. The Raiders were in the midst of a tight race for the playoffs themselves, and would ultimately win the Super Bowl. It made Dallas’ performance even more impressive—Dorsett ground out 97 yards, and the defense prevented Oakland from getting a running game going. It was the difference in a physical 19-13 win. When Philadelphia lost a big game at home against Atlanta, the Cowboys and Eagles were tied for first at 11-3.

Dallas and Philadelphia were set to meet in the season finale, but before that, the Cowboys had to get through a Monday Night game in Los Angeles. The Rams had eliminated the Cowboys from the playoffs in 1979 and LA needed this game to make it back this year. One team played desperate, and one team looked like it had somewhere else to be. Dallas was completely manhandled, giving up 242 yards on the ground and trailed 38-0 after three quarters before scoring two meaningless touchdowns.

The loss was consequential. Instead of a clean head-to-head game with Philadelphia for the division title, the Cowboys only path to first place was to win a tiebreaker on net points. And to do that they would have to win the finale by 25 points.

Dallas actually got in position to make it happen. White threw four touchdown passes to four different receivers and in the fourth quarter, the lead was 35-10. Now they just had to hang on. It was a surreal setting, a blowout game being contested as though it were a nailbiter. The Eagles drove for a touchdown and tacked on 10 more points. The Cowboys’ 35-27 win wasn’t enough, though the victory did ensure homefield advantage in the wild-card game.

A rematch with the Rams was up, and it’s hard to imagine what more motivation the Cowboys could want—this was the team that ended Staubach’s career a year earlier and was two weeks removed from inflicting a humiliating defeat.

The Cowboys got an early field goal, but the Rams answered with a touchdown run by Jewerl Thomas. A missed extra point kept the score 6-4. Another Septien field goal tied the game, but both Dallas drives had stalled at the 11-yard line. Meanwhile the Rams scored another touchdown to lead 13-6. A third Cowboy drive inside the red zone finally produced a touchdown, as Dorsett rolled in from twelve yards out. The game was tied at halftime.

If nothing else, after being pounded in the trenches two weeks earlier, Dallas had put on its big-boy pants for this one. Dorsett was rolling up the yardage and so was the rest of the team. On a day when both White and Ram quarterback Vince Ferragamo were erratic—three interceptions each—the running game was the difference.

Dallas ran for 338 yards, 160 from Dorsett and they pulled away in the second half. The final was 34-13 and it earned the Cowboys a visit to top-seeded Atlanta. Dallas was a 2 ½ point underdog the following week.

It was the final game of the divisional round weekend and Philadelphia had already won at home. It looked for much of the game like Atlanta would as well. The Cowboys allowed a long touchdown pass to Steve Bartkowski early and trailed 10-0 in the first quarter. A field goal and short White touchdown pass got them back in the game, but the Cowboys were still behind 17-10 at half, and they trailed 27-17 into the fourth quarter.

White found veteran receiver Drew Pearson for a touchdown pass to cut the lead to three points. The Cowboy defense came up with a stop, and they had one more chance to win. This was the setting Staubach always excelled in—breaking someone’s heart. And White showed he wasn’t bad at it either.

The quarterback finished the day 25/39 for 322 yards and with the money on the table, he led a 70-yard touchdown drive that ended with another touchdown pass to Pearson with 47 seconds left. Dallas missed a key PAT, but it proved not to matter. They had pulled out an improbable 30-27 win.

Danny White’s run ended up short of the Super Bowl the next week in Philadelphia. It was (-3) degrees with the wind chill and neither team was able to throw the ball. But the Cowboys couldn’t get the running game going, while the Eagles could. Dorsett was held to 41 yards while counterpart Wilbert Montgomery went off for 194. A game that was tied 7-7 at halftime ended up as a 20-7 loss that didn’t feel that close in the second half.

It was the start of a new era in Dallas, for both better and worse. White’s play showed the team would continue to win and advance in the playoffs. 1980 was the first of three straight years to the NFC Championship Game. But a franchise that defined itself by the Super Bowl would also settle into a pattern of coming up one game short. Not until Troy Aikman was the Cowboy quarterback in 1992 would the team make it back to the biggest game.

1980 Cleveland Browns: The Kardiac Kids Get Their Hearts Broken In The End

, , , , , ,

The football-crazed city of Cleveland was hungry in 1980—maybe not starving, as is the case today—but the Browns were on a bit of a dry spell. After making the playoffs in 1971-72, Cleveland had been out of the money, while the rival Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls in that same timeframe. The 1980 Cleveland Browns returned to the playoffs and in memorable fashion, with a series of exciting wins that gave them the nickname “The Kardiac Kids”.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Sam Rutigliano had taken over as head coach in 1978, and first two seasons ended with records of 8-8 and 9-7, so Cleveland was on the brink of a breakthrough. No player broke through with more force than quarterback Brian Sipe—he threw for over 4,100 yards, tossed 30 touchdown passes and won the MVP award, spreading the ball around to Dave Logan, Reggie Rucker,  future Hall of Fame tight end Ozzie Newsome and versatile running back Mike Pruitt.

The Browns also had offensive balance. Three Pro Bowlers were on the offensive line, Doug Dieken, Tom DeLeone and new right guard Joe DeLamielleure, a future Hall of Famer. This front five cleared the way for Pruitt to gain over 1,000 yards. The running back also led the team with 63 catches and punched a ticket to the Pro Bowl.

It added up to a team that finished eighth in the NFL in scoring in spite of playing in a division—the old AFC Central—that included the Steelers and the Houston Oilers, the runner-up in the AFC each of the past two years.

The defense was more about a team effort, with only 31-year-old defensive end Lyle Alzado making the Pro Bowl, but they were still pretty good and finished 12th in the NFL. The Browns would be tested quickly, with a road game at New England, where the Patriots had been a consistent winner in the late 1970s and then a Monday Night home date with the Oilers.

Nothing happened in Foxboro on September 7 to suggest a special season. In fact the opposite was suggested—Cleveland only rushed for 48 yards and fell behind 34-3 in the fourth quarter before scoring a couple meaningless touchdowns.

The Browns played better at home for the national audience but again could not run the ball in a 16-7 loss. They were in a quick 0-2 hole in what was the NFL’s toughest division.

Rookie running back Charles White, fresh off a Heisman Trophy season at USC in 1979, stepped up at home against the mediocre Kansas City Chiefs. With the scored tied 13-13, White ran for one touchdown, caught another and came out of the backfield for seven catches in all in a 27-13 win.

Sipe had his first big game of the year at Tampa Bay, throwing for 318 yards in a 34-27 win that got the Browns off the mat as September ended.

If we peek ahead six years, the Denver Broncos would become the ultimate nemesis of Cleveland. This Broncos team was average and John Elway was just a sophomore in college, but it didn’t stop Denver from coming to the shores of Lake Erie and stealing a win. Cleveland led 10-6 in the first half and was driving for a touchdown to put them in control when Sipe threw an interception that ended up in the opposing end zone. The Browns lost 19-16 and slipped back under. 500.

The quarterback cleaned up the mistakes the following week in Seattle and Pruitt was able to run over a poor Seahawks team for 116 yards, leading a decisive 27-3 win.

Cleveland was hanging in contention, and now was when The Kardiac Kids started to show. They trailed 21-13 at home against a subpar Green Bay Packers team. There was no two-point conversion in effect, so this was a two-score deficit in the fourth quarter. Sipe threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Newsome and then found Logan on a 46-yard strike. Sipe finished with 391 yards on the day.

The hated Steelers were in town next, struggling to find their footing. Terry Bradshaw was out for this game and backup Cliff Stout appeared ready to break Cleveland’s heart. The Steelers led the Browns 26-14 in the fourth quarter. Sipe flipped a short TD pass to Pruitt and then found Newsome over the top on an 18-yard touchdown pass to steal another victory.

A Monday Night home date with the Bears wasn’t quite as dramatic, but it was still close. Pruitt ran for 129 yards, while the defense held the great Walter Payton to 30 yards in a 27-21 win. Cleveland won its fifth straight game in Baltimore (where the Colts were in the AFC East, and not a division rival).

Pruitt and White combined for 180 yards on the ground and Sipe was calmly efficient, 22/29 for 212 yards and no interceptions. The final was 28-27, but Cleveland led by 15 points in the fourth quarter.

The Browns were now 7-3 and tied with the Oilers for first place in what was then a four-team division where only the Bengals were a non-contender. The Steelers were 6-4, and it served to heighten the drama for Cleveland’s visit to Pittsburgh on November 16. The Browns had a chance to put a stake in the heart of their rival and with the Steelers hoping to win a third straight Super Bowl, this game had the attention of the nation, even if was an early afternoon kickoff.

For three quarters and change it looked like Cleveland would do just that. They intercepted Bradshaw times and led much of the way. But the Browns weren’t running the ball and Sipe only went 15/34 for 178 yards. The lead was still 13-9 late in the game when a touchdown pass by Bradshaw with 11 seconds left cost Cleveland the game. They slipped into a second-place tie with Pittsburgh.

The good news was, that was the last high point for the Steelers and the Browns were able to respond well at home against Cincinnati. Sipe threw four touchdown passes and for 310 yards on the day in a 31-7 win. Both of their division rivals lost, so Cleveland was back in a first-place tie when they went to Houston for a late Sunday afternoon kickoff.

Houston’s running game, with Earl Campbell, was the most feared in the NFL, but it was Cleveland who won the battle of the trenches. Little-known Cleo Miller ran for two early touchdowns and the Browns outgained the Oilers on the ground 121-114. Even though Sipe only threw for 93 yards, he took care of the football and Cleveland’s 5-1 edge in turnovers led to a 17-14 win.

There was a bit of a letdown against the lowly Jets the following week at home, where Cleveland trailed 14-10 in the fourth quarter, a game they were a (-9) favorite. The running game was non-existent. But Sipe stepped it up, threw for 340 yards on the day and a short TD pass to Pruitt pulled out a 17-14 win. Cleveland was now 10-4, one game up on Houston and two games up on Pittsburgh.

The Browns owned the tiebreaker on the Steelers, so that race was over, and also on the Oilers. Therefore a win in Minnesota would clinch the division. But now the comeback script turned on Cleveland. They led 23-9 in the fourth quarter, but gave up two consecutive touchdown passes. A missed extra point looked ready to bail out the Browns, but the Vikings had time for one more play with the score 23-22.

Minnesota had the ball on the Cleveland 46-yard line and wide receiver Ahmad Rashad ran down the sideline. The defenders were with him, but the ball kept getting batted around, never knocked to the ground. Rashad finally grabbed it and stepped into the end zone. The Browns had lost a 28-23 stunner. The Oilers won in Green Bay, so the AFC Central remained up for grabs.

What’s more, a playoff berth was not yet secure. In this era of three divisions with two wild-cards, the AFC West already had one wild-card secured, with the Raiders and Chargers both in. The Oilers had also clinched at least a wild-card. The reason the Browns had not was that the Patriots were in hot pursuit at 9-6. If Cleveland lost in Cincinnati, Houston could win and take the AFC Central outright, while New England could win and steal the last playoff spot on the head-to-head tiebreaker at 10-6.

The Bengals were 6-9, but this was a team just a year away from going to the Super Bowl. They also wanted badly to wreck the Browns’ season and they nearly pulled it off. Cleveland trailed 17-10 before scoring two consecutive touchdowns to get the lead. Cincinnati tied it back up 24-24.

But Sipe solidified his MVP case, throwing for 308 yards, spreading the ball to nine different receivers and ultimately setting up a field goal with 1:25 to play. Cincinnati’s last desperate drive got them to the Cleveland 31-yard line, but out of timeouts, the Bengals were unable to set up a field goal try. The Browns were AFC Central champs.

All five playoff teams in the AFC finished 11-5, and Cleveland ended up as the #2 seed behind San Diego. Oakland won the wild-card game, but the rules prior to 1990 prevented teams from the same division playing each other in the second round. The Browns would host the Raiders in the early Sunday afternoon game of divisional round weekend.

Temperatures were brutally cold and a 21 mph wind created conditions that were (-20) degrees with the wind chill. The field itself was frozen, and Browns’ kicker Don Cockroft missed two field goals, and another was messed up with a bad snap. All that factored into Rutigliano’s thinking on the fateful final drive.

Cleveland trailed 14-12 and reached the Oakland 14-yard line with 14 seconds left. Rutigliano decided to have Sipe throw the ball in the end zone, not trusting Cockroft enough to simply set up a field goal. Sipe thought he had Newsome in the back of the end zone. But the quarterback didn’t see defensive back Mike Davis in front and the interception ended Cleveland’s season in heartbreaking fashion.

I think Rutigliano overreacted to the field conditions. Yes, Cockroft had missed the two field goals, along with an extra point. But he had also made two field goals of 30 yards, about the same distance he would have been lining up for here. Throwing the ball in these conditions—particularly against a Raider secondary that had a deserved reputation for ballhawking—carried its own set of risks.

In fairness, the coach did clearly instruct Sipe that if no one was wide open, to just throw it away. Sipe also took a risk not really necessary. The unfortunate result was a playoff heartbreak for a city that’s had too many.

But the tough ending in the bitter cold can’t obscure how much fun the 1980 Cleveland Browns were. The dethroned a Super Bowl champ in their division, produced an MVP and rattled off a series of exciting wins on their way to the playoffs. That’s the more important legacy of this team.

The Game-By-Game Narrative Of The 1980 Buffalo Bills

, , , , , ,

Chuck Knox became head coach of the Buffalo Bills when they were coming off a 3-11 season in 1977. This was a franchise that had some good moments—three straight winning seasons, including one playoff trip, from 1973-75, with O.J. Simpson. They came within one game of reaching the first Super Bowl in 1966. The 1980 Buffalo Bills, Knox’s third team brought the postseason back to Buffalo, even if they couldn’t bring the Super Bowl.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

This wasn’t a team bursting at the seams with talent. Defensive tackle Fred Smerlas was the only Pro Bowler on the defensive side of the ball, and this unit was the strength of the team. Buffalo ranked third in the NFL in points allowed.

There were two Pro Bowlers on offense, starting with rookie running back Joe Cribbs, who ran for nearly 1,200 yards and caught 52 passes. Wide receiver Jerry Butler also made the Pro Bowl. Quarterback Joe Ferguson was respectable and the 30-year-old threw for 2,800 yards with a TD-INT ratio of 20/18. It wasn’t fantastic, but by the standards of the era, it was above average.

The offense still lagged behind the defense, ranking 12th in the NFL. The Bills were in a division with the New England Patriots, who had been producing winning teams in recent years and the Miami Dolphins, the reigning AFC East champs and the pre-eminent power of the decade under the coaching of Don Shula.

That Knox, who had spent most of the 1970s turning out playoff teams for the Los Angeles Rams, beat out the Patriots and Dolphins is testament to his coaching ability.

Buffalo had to be ready right out of the gate, with Miami coming in for Week 1. Ferguson played poorly, throwing five interceptions, but the Bills’ defense answered back with four picks of their own, and they also won the rushing battle. Two fourth quarter touchdowns produced a 17-7 win.

Ferguson picked up the next week at home against the New York Jets, going 18/29 for 207 yards and no mistakes. Buffalo spotted the visitors a field goal and then ripped off 20 straight points, including a Pick-6 from Jeff Nixon and they won 20-10.

Buffalo was a modest (+2) underdog in New Orleans and trailed 19-14 at the half. But this Saints’ team would be the worst in the NFL in 1980. Cribbs rushed for 89 yards, while the Bills held New Orleans’ runner Chuck Muncie to 22 yards and Buffalo eventually won 35-26.

The next two weeks would produce tests against the teams that would prove to be the best in the AFC West, the Oakland Raiders—who ultimately won the Super Bowl this season—and the San Diego Chargers. The Bills showed what they were made of. Buffalo’s defense dominated Oakland, forcing five turnovers and holding the Raiders to 70 yards rushing. Oakland’s defense scored a touchdown, but their offense did nothing, and the Bills got a 24-7 home win. The next week’s game at San Diego provided another chance to meet Muncie—the Chargers had just acquired the talented running back from the Saints.  Buffalo again shut him down, with Muncie gaining just 37 yards.

But San Diego had a high-powered passing attack led by Dan Fouts and they led 14-3 in the second quarter. Buffalo linebacker Lucius Sanford turned the tide of the game with a fumble return for a touchdown. And while the Chargers couldn’t run, Cribbs chipped away for 87 yards. The Bills took care of the ball, while forcing four turnovers and eventually a fourth-quarter touchdown from Cribbs won it, 26-24.

Buffalo was rolling along at 5-0, but after the early big wins, they let down at home against the mediocre Baltimore Colts. Ferguson was erratic, going just 17-for-36, and the Bills lost 17-12. Then they dropped a road game in Miami when they dug a 14-0 hole thanks to allowing a touchdown off a turnover, couldn’t get the running game going and lost 17-14.

The Bills were now a game back of the Patriots in the AFC East (which at this time included the Colts, along with the division’s four current teams). New England came to Buffalo on October 26 for a big midseason battle.

After spotting the Pats a field goal, Ferguson threw a pair of second quarter touchdown passes to Frank Lewis. The game was still tight, 17-13 Buffalo in the fourth quarter. But Cribbs was controlling the game on the ground. He finished with 118 yards and rushed for two fourth quarter touchdowns to lead a 31-13 win.

If Buffalo was the surprise team in the AFC, the Atlanta Falcons had that honor in the NFC, and the two teams played in Atlanta on November 2. This time it was the Bills who had the early lead—14-zip with a Ferguson TD pass and Cribbs TD run—but then the Falcons ripped off 30 straight points and won going away.

The Jets finished 4-12 and when the Bills went into old Shea Stadium and grabbed a 17-0 lead, it looked like this game would be easy. But New York didn’t go away and they crawled all the way back to a 24-24 tie, as early evening settled on the Big Apple. It was oddly foreshadowing of a playoff game that would take place here one year later, when Buffalo first blew a big lead and then hung on for dear life. Today, Ferguson found Lewis on a touchdown pass that got the Bills out of town with a 31-24 win.

Buffalo’s defense delivered the next week in Cincinnati, holding a subpar Bengal team to 68 yards rushing in a 14-0 win. The next game was at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers. This was not an opponent who would make the playoffs, but the Steelers were the two-time defending Super Bowl champions and on November 23 they were still very much alive.

The Steelers left Buffalo with their heads hanging. Ferguson found Butler for a 29-yard touchdown pass in the first half and the Bills led 14-10. Cribbs ran over the proud Steel Curtain defense and led a team effort that produced 178 yards rushing. Buffalo pulled away to a 28-13 win.

Given the prominence of the 1970s Steeler Dynasty and the fact they never recovered after this game—either this season or with this core group of players—it’s not too much to say the victory by the 1980 Buffalo Bills was a seminal moment in NFL history.

Maybe that explains Buffalo’s inability to get up for the games with Baltimore, because they went south and after scoring the game’s first 14 points, the Bills fell asleep and lost 28-24. They were still 9-4 though, and holding on to first place over the 8-5 Patriots. The Dolphins had slipped to 6-7 and would not challenge for the AFC East crown.

The schedule didn’t provide any favors though, with a home game against the playoff-bound Los Angeles Rams followed by a trip to New England. The game against the Rams was a defensive battle, and Buffalo’s only points in regulation came on a 47-yard interception return by Steve Freeman. The game was tied 7-7 in overtime before the Bills finally won it. The next night, fans in Buffalo watched with delight as Miami beat New England. The Bills had a two-game lead in the AFC East with two weeks to go.

Buffalo still didn’t have the tiebreaker—if they lost in New England, the Patriots would gain the edge, thanks to Buffalo’s divisional losses to Baltimore. And with their first AFC East title at hand, the Bills didn’t exactly meet the moment. For the second straight week, the offense failed to score any points. This time, all the defense got was a safety in an embarrassing 24-2 loss.

The Bills could still clinch if they won at San Francisco. But this wouldn’t be easy. The 49ers were 6-9, but this was the team, led by Bill Walsh and quarterbacked by Joe Montana, that would win the Super Bowl a year later. Less than a month earlier, the Patriots had come west and walked home with a loss. San Francisco was aiming to complete AFC East parlay.

Furthermore, Buffalo did not have a playoff berth in hand if the division got away. The entire AFC was packed top-to-bottom. The format at the time was three division winners and two wild-cards (like MLB is today). San Diego and Oakland were both going out of the West. Houston was in out of the Central and Cleveland was set to clinch too (and even if the Browns lost, that would benefit the Patriots, who had beaten Cleveland head-to-head, rather than Buffalo).

That’s the long explanation for this reality—Buffalo went to San Francisco facing what was, for all practical purposes, a win-or-go-home situation. And they had to do so with an injured quarterback—Ferguson had badly messed up his ankle in Foxboro, but he was a gamer and would play in the finale.

Ferguson threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Butler, but the missed extra point kept the early lead at 6-0. The missed PAT loomed large with the game tied 13-13 in the fourth quarter. Cribbs was stepping up, as he had all year long, and finished with 128 yards. Buffalo was finally able to get a field goal, and then get modest breathing room a safety. They won 18-13 and were division champs.

The two weeks off provided only marginal improvement to Ferguson’s ankle and that proved costly in the divisional round at San Diego. Buffalo played well here for the second time this season and had a 14-3 lead. But Ferguson couldn’t get comfortable in the pocket. He finished with three interceptions, including a critical one in the red zone that might have put the game away. Fouts eventually pulled the game out with a 50-yard touchdown pass with 2:08 left.

Buffalo’s 20-14 loss was a tough way to end the season, but that couldn’t take away from how much the time overachieved and finally broke through, with its first AFC East crown.

The Game-By-Game Narrative Of The 1980 Atlanta Falcons

, , , , , ,

The Atlanta Falcons have never won a Super Bowl and have only made it there once. That means there’s some heartbreak littered in the history of the franchise, and a prime example was the 1980 Atlanta Falcons. They earned the #1 seed and looked on their way to a playoff win before the rug was cut out from under them.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Steve Bartkowski, a former #1 overall draft pick had a Pro Bowl year at quarterback. Bartkowski threw for over 3,500 yards and had a 31/16 TD-INT ratio, both very good numbers by the standards of the time. Running back William Andrews and receiver Alfred Jenkins were both Pro Bowlers and 1,000-yard producers.

Junior Miller was a rookie who stepped in at tight end and added yet another happen, also earning a Pro Bowl lost. Across the front line, center Jeff Van Note and left tackle Matt Kenn would be similarly honored, Kenn as 1st-team All-Pro.

With this kind of talent throughout the lineup it’s not hard to see why the Falcons were the fifth-most prolific offense in the NFL.
The defense didn’t have the same standout talent, with no Pro Bowlers and three rookie starters. But with coordinator Jerry Glanville, a future head coach with the Houston Oilers and then back here in Atlanta calling the shots, the defense also ranked fifth in the NFL.

Atlanta had made the playoffs in 1978 for the first time in the Super Bowl era, but then slipped back to 6-10 in 1979, so the 1980 NFL season didn’t open with soaring expectations. A disappointing loss at Minnesota started the year, when a missed extra point was the difference in a 24-23 loss.

Bartkowski opened up the following week in New England. With the Falcons and Patriots in a 14-14 tie, The quarterback threw two consecutive touchdown passes to Miller and finished the day 19/30 for 244 yards. Andrews rolled for 124 yards and Atlanta pulled away to a 37-21 win. Bartkowski threw more two more touchdown passes in the following week’s home opener against the Miami Dolphins and put the Falcons ahead 17-3, but a defensive letdown at the end resulted in a 20-17 loss.

Atlanta didn’t play particularly well at San Francisco the following week, where the 49ers were still a team struggling to develop with Bill Walsh at coach and Joe Montana at quarterback. The Falcons were outplayed, but they won the turnover battle, playing a clean game themselves and getting two interceptions from outside linebacker Al Richardson. Atlanta stole a 20-17 win.

The Detroit Lions were next. Detroit had been the NFL’s worst in 1979, but jumped all the way to nine wins behind rookie running back Billy Sims. But Atlanta played its best game of the young season, scoring twice on defense, once on special teams and getting strong rushing from Andrews and Lynn Cain. The Falcons led 34-3 by the second quarter and won 43-28.

Consistency remained beyond their grasp though and at home against a bad New York Jets team, the Falcons were outrushed 190-97. Bartkowski was intercepted twice and even punter John James was picked off. The result was a 14-7 loss. Even when Atlanta blew out the New Orleans Saints 41-14 on the road, there wasn’t a lot of reason to get excited. The Saints would supplant the Lions as the NFL’s worst team.

October 26 brought the Los Angeles Rams to town. The Rams had reached the Super Bowl a year earlier and throughout the 1970s had been the standard in the old NFC West (the Rams, Falcons, 49ers and Saints). Atlanta was a (+3) underdog, even playing at home.

The game was a defensive battle and the Falcons trailed 10-6 in the fourth quarter. But they were able to find some running room for Andrews, who gained 111 yards. And that eventually opened up the passing game, with Bartkowski hitting Jenkins on a 54-yard touchdown pass and a 13-10 win.

Atlanta was now 5-3 and a big win in Buffalo, against a good Bills team built on the momentum. Despite falling behind 14-0 and Bartkowski throwing three interceptions, the Falcons muscled their way back into the game behind the running of Andrews and Cain. Then they pulled away, forcing five turnovers and winning 30-14.

The pattern of falling behind and coming back kept going at St. Louis, as the Cardinals took a 17-3 lead. Bartkowski found tight end Wallace Francis on a 27-yard touchdown pass to get back in the game and the quarterback kept right on rolling. He threw for 378 yards and Cain led a rushing attack that went for 209 yards. Atlanta won in overtime, 33-27.

Bartkowski carved up the Saints in an easy 31-13 home win, throwing three touchdown passes to three different receivers, with Andrews and Cain continuing to pound the football on the ground. The following week brought the mediocre Chicago Bears to town. Despite falling behind 10-0 and trailing 17-14 after three quarters, Bartkowski hit Jenkins from 42 yards out to get the lead and then flipped a nine-yard scoring pass to Andrews that iced a 28-17 win.

With six straight wins, the Falcons were 9-3, a game up on the Rams in the NFC West. Atlanta’s defense delivered the next win, at home against the Washington Redskins. The Falcons held the subpar Redskins to 85 yards rushing, forced three turnovers while committing none of their own and won the game 10-6.

Los Angeles was still directly in the rearview mirror, but Atlanta had a playoff berth all but wrapped up. The alignment of the time was a three-division format where two wild-card teams also advanced (the format MLB uses today). The Falcons/Rams in the West, and the Dallas Cowboys/Philadelphia Eagles in the East were in good shape, with the significant battles being over playoff position.

All that gave Atlanta’s December 7 trip to Philadelphia added juice, with both teams in first place in their divisions. The first break for the Falcons came in the weather—abnormally warm at 46 degrees. Even though they were a (+6) underdog and fell behind 14-3, Bartkowski again led the way back.

He found Francis on a touchdown pass before the half and Cain on another after the half. Andrews ran for 101 yards while Eagle counterpart Wilbert Montgomery was held to 43. Atlanta kicker Tim Mazzetti ultimately won it with a field goal, 20-17. On this same day, the Rams lost. The Falcons had a two-game lead in the division and they held the top seed in the NFC by virtue of a head-to-head tiebreaker with the Eagles.

Atlanta still needed to win at home against San Francisco, or the NFC West title could come down to a head-to-head battle in Los Angeles in the finale. After a season of digging themselves holes, the Falcons made this one easy—Bartkowski went 22/31 for 276 yards, Richardson recovered a fumble in the end zone and Atlanta sewed up the first-ever division crown with a 35-10 rout.

The #1 seed was still in play and the season finale had Falcons-Rams and Eagles-Cowboys going at the same time. But it was apparent early on that Dallas was going to win, locking Atlanta into the top spot and Los Angeles into going on the road to Dallas for the wild-card game. The Falcons and Rams played a good game and the nine-game Atlanta win streak came to an end, 20-17 in overtime, but it didn’t actually matter.

The Cowboys beat the Rams in the wild-card game and came to Atlanta on January 4 for the divisional playoff. The Falcons were a narrow (-2.5) favorite, but they led 24-10 after three quarters and 27-17 midway through the fourth quarter. Then it was time for the heartbreak.

Dallas had cut the lead to 27-24, but Atlanta had the ball and one first down would kill the clock. On third-and-short, Cowboy defensive lineman Too Tall Jones jumped offside, but was able to get back. To this day, Van Note regrets not immediately snapping the ball and forcing the penalty call that would have resulted in a game-clinching first down.

But in fairness to the center, the team’s season-long policy had been *not* to snap the ball in those situations, lest a fumble result. It’s a debatable policy, but not reasonable to expect Van Note to rapidly change course on the team’s most important play of the year.

Of course, it follows that Atlanta failed to pick up the first down, Dallas marched down and won the game. It stands as perhaps the third-most heartbreaking loss in franchise history, behind only the NFC Championship Game following the 2012 season and the Super Bowl loss to New England that ended 2016. This core group of Atlanta Falcons players would never again be a real championship contender.

The Game-By-Game Narrative Of The 1980 Minnesota Vikings

, , , , , ,

The Minnesota Vikings were in their second year of the post-Fran Tarkenton era in 1980. After making regular playoff appearances and four Super Bowl trips from 1969-78, the franchise slipped out of the postseason in the first year without the Hall of Famer. The 1980 Minnesota Vikings didn’t arrest the long-term decline of the team, but they did squeak back to the top of a weak NFC Central division.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Tommy Kramer was in his second year at quarterback and he was explosive, throwing for over 3,500 yards at a time when a number like that was hard to get to. But he was also mistake-prone, and finished with a TD-INT ratio of 19/23.

The Vikings as a whole were mediocre offensively, ranking in the middle of the league in points scored. The offense had only one Pro Bowler, wide receiver Ahmad Rashad, who broke the 1,000-yard barrier. The only other notable player was future Hall of Fame right tackle Ron Yary who was now 34-years-old.

Minnesota’s defense was a little bit better, ranking 11th, although this side of the ball had the same problem as the offense. Matt Blair was 1st-team All-Pro at linebacker, but he was the only Pro Bowler. Here too, the most notable talent was long in the tooth, with corner Bobby Bryant age 36.

Week 1 brought the Atlanta Falcons into town and the Kramer-to-Rashad combo got right to work. Rashad caught 11 passes for 160 yards. Kramer threw for 395 yards and rifled three touchdown passes. The Vikes caught a break when the Falcons missed an extra point and it was the difference in Minnesota’s 24-23 win.

Another home game was up next with the Philadelphia Eagles and this one didn’t go nearly as well. The Vikings rush defense was non-existent and they gave up 28 second-half points in a 42-7 loss. The positive side was this—the Vikes had managed a split of two games against the teams who would finish 1-2 in the NFC seeding (although only Philadelphia was perceived as such at the time of the games).

Minnesota played their first game against NFC Central foes (the four current teams of the NFC North plus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) when they went to Chicago and blew the game open with big plays. Kramer hit Rashad on a 76-yard touchdown strike. Running back Ted Brown took off on a 55-yard scoring jaunt. And Tom Hannon intercepted a pass and took it 41 yards for a touchdown. The final was 34-14.

The pattern of a win being followed by a blowout loss with terrible rush defense continued when the Vikings went to Detroit. Kramer threw five interceptions and Minnesota allowed 260 rushing yards in a 27-7 loss. Kramer threw five more interceptions in a 23-17 home loss to the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers.

The loss was worse than it appeared in two ways—the Vikes actually trailed 23-3 in the fourth quarter. And it turns out the Steeler Dynasty would end and this was a non-playoff team doing the damage. Minnesota was still able to get back to .500 with a great defensive effort in a 13-7 home win over Chicago. John Turner intercepted three passes, part of six-turnover day for the Viking defense.

Minnesota still struggled to find consistency, going to a poor Cincinnati Bengals team and losing 14-0. Kramer didn’t implode with interceptions, though he did throw two. The real problem was that he was just completely unproductive, going 13/25 for 130 yards and the offense earned just ten first downs.

Another low point followed in Green Bay. In spite of forcing five turnovers, the Viking defense was run over by a bad team, as the Packers picked up 147 yards on the ground. A game that was tied 3-3 going into the fourth quarter ended up as a 16-3 loss.

Head coach Bud Grant had a team in serious trouble. They were 3-5 and half the schedule had been against teams that would finish the 1980 NFL season under .500. Another road trip to face the weak Washington Redskins went better for Minnesota. Steve Dils stepped in at quarterback and threw a pair of early touchdown passes and went 18/29 for 200 yards. Just as important, Dils did not throw an interception and the result was a 39-14 win.

Minnesota was set to host Detroit on November 9. The Lions were 6-3 and leading the division, with the Vikings sitting on 4-5. Kramer was back in the lineup and he threw a quick 67-yard touchdown pass to Brown out of the backfield. It was 10-0 at the half and the Vikes broke it open on defense, with Kurt Knoff’s 67-yard interception return making it 17-zip and Minnesota didn’t stop until they had a 34-0 win that kept their season alive.

Kramer got into a passing war with Tampa Bay’s Doug Williams in a home game the following week. Kramer threw for 324 yards, while Williams went for 486. But the Viking quarterback was staying mistake-free in this one and his team’s 3-0 turnover advantage was the difference in a 38-30 win. Detroit lost to the sub-.500 Baltimore Colts and the NFC Central race was tied.

Green Bay came north to play in the old outdoor Metropolitan Stadium and for reason, the Vikings continued to make the no-name Packer backfield look like the reincarnation of Paul Hornung and Jim Taylor. This time Minnesota allowed 246 rushing yards in a 25-13 loss as they slipped a game back of Detroit in the race.

A trip to New Orleans, where the Saints were the worst team in the NFL, was what any contender would hope for with four weeks left. Minnesota took advantage, with Ted Brown rushing for 95 yards and the Vikings jumping out to a 23-0 lead before hanging on 23-20. The Lions lost at home to the mediocre Bears and the NFC Central was again a dead heat.

Detroit continued to fade the next week, and Minnesota stepped into sole possession of first place with a win in Tampa Bay. It didn’t come easy, as they trailed 10-0 at the half. But there was a running game going, with Brown picking up 90 yards and Kramer went 22/31 for 264 yards. He hit Sammy White for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter and the Vikings went on to a 21-10 win.

Two difficult opponents remained, at home with the Cleveland Browns and on the road at the Houston Oilers, both playoff-bound in the AFC and the Browns still needed to win on December 14. The good news for the Vikings was that they only needed one win—thanks to an edge on the Lions in conference record, the Vikes would take the NFC Central if they just got to 9-7.

It didn’t look good when the trailed 23-9 in the second half against Cleveland and it looked like any comeback bid would be thwarted when they missed an extra point following a touchdown that cut the lead to 23-15. There was no two-point conversion at this time, so the next touchdown kept the Vikings behind 23-22.

They got the ball back and were on the 46-yard line with time for one more play. Kramer had already thrown for 410 yards and three touchdowns against no interceptions in his best game of the year. He stepped up and launched it deep one more time.

Rashad went down the sideline and the ball started hitting hands in the crowd. The 31-year-old receiver stayed with it, made the play and hopped into the end zone. In a stunning finish, the Vikings had won 28-23.

The way this game ended didn’t make up for a similar ending in the 1975 NFC playoffs, when Minnesota was on the wrong end of a desperation pass against the Dallas Cowboys. But this 1980 stunner proved to be necessary—the Vikings lost the next week in Houston, Detroit won both games and Minnesota took the tiebreaker with both teams at 9-7. They were back in the playoffs.

A trip to Philadelphia followed two weeks later—prior to 1990, all division winners were seeded directly into the divisional playoff round. The Vikings were a (+7) underdog, but came out firing and took a 14-0 lead. But Kramer’s turnover problems completely caught up with him in. As the Eagles rallied, Kramer would throw interceptions on each of his team’s final four possessions. Minnesota turned the ball over eight times, seven in the second half, as they lost 31-16.

Grant’s time as head coach was winding down and he would only make the playoffs one more time. His days of producing Super Bowl contending teams were finished. But the 1980 season showed, the head coach could still keep pushing his team into the postseason.

The Game-By-Game Narrative Of The 1980 Houston Oilers

, , , , , ,

The anticipation was high for the 1980 Houston Oilers. Two years earlier they had drafted running back Earl Campbell and he proved to be the missing piece for a team on the brink of the playoffs. The Oilers made the AFC Championship Game in 1978 before being blown out by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Houston made it back in 1979 and lost a more competitive game to Pittsburgh. 1980 was set to be the Oilers’ time.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Houston made a big trade in the offseason, swapping quarterbacks with the Oakland Raiders. The Oilers gave up Dan Pastorini in exchange for Ken Stabler. In the mid-1970s, Stabler had lost two straight AFC Championship Games to Pittsburgh before getting over the top against the Steelers in 1976 and winning in the Super Bowl. The Oilers wanted the veteran lefty to bring that same know-how to the rest of the time.

“…we knocked on the door,” head coach Bum Phillips told a rally of Houston fans regarding the 1978 season. “Then we beat on it. Next year, we’re gonna kick (profane slur) in!” The rallying cry for the Oilers was set.

The time to back up the talk would come right away when Houston visited Pittsburgh for a Week 1 game. In our own day, this would be in prime-time, probably a Thursday Night season opener. 1980 was a different time and it was a normal early afternoon kick in old Three Rivers Stadium.

It didn’t start well or finish well for the Oilers. They fell behind 17-0, and Campbell would only carry the ball 13 times. Houston rallied to tie the game 17-17, but Stabler threw five interceptions in what ended up as a 31-17 defeat.

Campbell completed a 57-yard touchdown pass, but perhaps that underscored the problem—if Houston had known that Earl was going to be their best passer, and that he would get as many yards in in the air as he did on the ground, the Oilers would have known this wouldn’t be their day.

Houston had never been a great offensive team in this short period of ascendancy. They were usually fairly average, relying on Campbell to exclusively carry the load. This season didn’t turn it out any different in that regard—Earl’s 1,934 yards won him a third rushing title in three NFL seasons, and left tackle Leon Gray was another 1st-team All-Pro.

But Stabler threw 28 interceptions against only 13 touchdowns and the Oilers still finished 20th in the NFL in points scored. The defense made up for it. Though the only Pro Bowl talent was outside linebacker Robert Brazile and corner Greg Stemrick, the whole was greater than the sum of the parts and Houston ranked 2nd in the league in points allowed.

The Oilers came out of Pittsburgh and had another tough divisional game against the Cleveland Browns, this one on Monday Night Football. The offensive struggles continued for a half and Houston trailed 7-3. But Stabler was staying away from mistakes this time. His high-percentage short-yardage passing produced a 23/28 for 187 yards and Campbell rushed for 106. The Oilers won 16-7.

Campbell only got seven carries in the next week’s home opener against the Baltimore Colts, but Rob Carpenter stepped and gained 114 yards. Stabler was 18/21 for 219 yards, and even with two interceptions, it was enough for a 21-16 win over a mediocre opponent.

The Cincinnati Bengals were the only non-contending team in the old AFC Central, joining Houston, Pittsburgh and Cleveland. But the Oilers had their problems in Cincy, trailing 10-7 in the fourth quarter and even when they rallied, two drives stalled in the red zone. Houston was still able to escape with a couple field goals in a 13-10 win.

A lousy team in the Seattle Seahawks visited Houston next and Campbell only ran for 50 yards, while Stabler threw five interceptions in an embarrassing 26-7 loss. The following week’s trip to Kansas City ended in another loss. Even though Earl got rolling with 178 yards, Stabler had an interception returned for a touchdown and the Oilers lost to a .500 team, 21-20.

Amidst the 3-3 record, the positive was that Campbell was untracked after slow start. He romped for 203 yards in a 20-14 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And the front office continued to go all-in, making another trade with the Raiders, this one for veteran tight end Dave Casper, a favorite Stabler target.

You could play with anyone at the skill positions when Campbell was in high gear though, and he continued to be at home against the Bengals, racking up a third straight 200-yard game in a 23-3 win. A road trip to Denver saw Earl get the ball 36 times, produce 147 yards and lead the way to a 20-16 win.

The New England Patriots had a high-powered offense and they were coming into the Astrodome for a Monday Night appearance. Houston was ready. Campbell had 130 yards and Stabler played perhaps his best game of the year, going 15/17 for 258 yards a great display of precision and big-play ability. The Oilers jumped out to a 24-6 lead and held off a Patriots rally for a 38-34 win. It was a game that would prove decisive in the push for the AFC playoffs.

After being “held” to 130 yards against the Pats, Campbell apparently felt he had something to prove in Chicago and he again rolled past the 200-yard mark in a tough 10-6 win. Houston was 8-3 and atop the AFC Central, with the Browns and Steelers both giving chase at 7-4. Maybe the Oilers really were going to kick that door in.

Then came an inexplicably bad showing at the New York Jets, a woeful team that won only four games. An early Houston drive ended with a Stabler interception being taken back the other way and Houston trailed 21-0 early. Stabler fought back gamely, and threw four touchdown passes to lead a furious rally to tie the game 28-28, skillfully working his tight end-heavy passing game of Casper, Mike Barber and Rich Caster. Stabler finished with 388 yards, but the Jets stole the game in overtime.

The final day of November saw Cleveland come into Houston for a late Sunday afternoon kickoff. The teams were tied for first, with Pittsburgh, showing their age and struggling a game behind. This game with the Browns, and a rare Thursday Night game five days later with the Steelers, gave Houston a perfect chance to put the division race under firm control.

But turnovers did them in against the Browns, five of them in all. Campbell ran for 109 yards, but Earl simply being good wasn’t enough—he always had to be great—and with the turnovers, the Browns won 17-14. Houston’s defense responded against Pittsburgh. Though the game took “ugly” to new levels, the Oilers picked off Terry Bradshaw three times, Campbell ground out 81 yards on 21 carries and Houston won 6-0.

With a record of 9-5, the Oilers were a game back of the Browns and a game ahead of the Steelers and the Patriots. You could reasonably assume that the AFC West was going to produce two playoff teams, Oakland and the San Diego Chargers, and in the format of 1980, that left one wild-card berth. Houston at least controlled their destiny for that.

And the Oilers locked up the playoff spot the next week in Green Bay. This writer grew up in southeastern Wisconsin and this December 14 game was my first trip to Lambeau Field at the age of ten. I remember Houston controlling the game, Campbell running for a touchdown and a bunch of guys near us passing around a bottle of rum. Houston won 22-3.

They also got a break when Cleveland lost at Minnesota, keeping the division title—and even in the #1 seed in play. The finale was Houston’s turn to play Minnesota. The Oilers trailed 16-13, but it was another vintage performance from Campbell, who ran for 203 yards. Stabler went 19/33 for 239 yards, with Casper being his top target.

Cleveland was taken to the wire in Cincinnati, but the Browns survived and won the division. Houston’s 11-5 record was tied for the best in the AFC—all five playoff teams finished with the same record. It was one game better than the Patriots, who ended up outside the playoff picture—that Monday Night win in November was the difference between Houston and New England. And the Oilers were two games better than the Steelers, who saw their dynasty end.

After all the preseason hype, was there anyone more appropriate for Houston to play in the AFC wild-card game than Oakland? Pastorini had gotten hurt and then lost his job to Jim Plunkett, so Houston wouldn’t face their old friend. They would have been better off if they had.

Campbell fumbled on the game’s first play and set up a quick Oakland field goal. The great running back was held to just 91 yards. Even though Houston trailed just 10-7 going into the fourth quarter, the roof fell in at the end. The Raiders scored ten points and then iced the win when Stabler threw the second of his two interceptions and it ended up returned for a score.

The year of great expectation ended in deep disappointment with the 27-7 loss. The disappointment only got deeper as it became apparent that Houston’s rise to contender status was over. The Oilers never again made the playoffs with this core group.

Campbell’s body wore down prematurely, a victim of both all those carries and the philosophy of defenses to put four helmets on him every time he touched the football. The man who was perhaps the greatest running back of the modern era ended up with debilitating lower body problems that have plagued him going forward. Although we must note that Campbell’s life overall is a success story, as he become a successful businessman and gives back to his alma mater, the University of Texas.

1980 was also a temporary end for the Houston Oilers. They didn’t make the playoffs until Warren Moon came to town in 1987, and this city has never reached the Super Bowl, with either the Oilers (now the Tennessee Titans) or today’s Texans.

The Game-By-Game Narrative Of The 1980 Los Angeles Rams

, , , , , ,

For better and for worse, the 1980 Los Angeles Rams were a team that returned to form. The Rams spent most of the 1970s as a good team that kept coming up short in the playoffs. In 1979 they became a mediocre team, but one that scraped into the postseason out of a weak division…and they somehow made the Super Bowl. Los Angeles was improved in 1980, going 11-5, but that was small consolation when they again lost in the playoffs.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

An improved offense was the biggest reason the Rams won two more regular season games in 1980. Vince Ferragamo had taken the job from Pat Haden the previous year, and Ferragamo threw for nearly 3,200 yards with a 30/19 TD-INT ratio—pretty good, by the standards of the times.

The offensive line was anchored by Pro Bowlers Kent Hill and Rich Saul, and there were a future Hall of Famer at right tackle in Jackie Slater. Protected by this line, Ferragamo spread the ball around to Preston Dennard and Billy Waddy in the passing game, while Elvis Peacock and Cullen Bryant carried the rushing load.

None were spectacular, but all were steady. The result was Los Angeles ranking third in the NFL in points scored.

Five Pro Bowlers dotted the lineup on defense, led by first-team All-Pro free safety Nolan Cromwell. The corners were in good hands with Pat Thomas and Rod Perry, while Larry Brooks made it at defensive tackle and 33-year-old middle linebacker Jack Reynolds again got Pro Bowl recognition. The LA defense was further supported by veterans up front in Jack Youngblood and Fred Dryer. The Ram defense was seventh in the league in points allowed.

The season started with a bang—Drew Hill took the opening kickoff against the Detroit Lions and took it 98 yards to the house. The Rams still led 20-17 at half, but they were being lacerated on the ground. Detroit, the worst team in the NFL a year earlier, had drafted a Heisman Trophy running back in Billy Sims. Los Angeles allowed 330 rushing yards overall and they fell apart in the second half of a 41-20 home loss.

Thursday Night games weren’t common in 1980, but the Rams played one in Week 2 for the second straight season. This one was in Tampa Bay, a rematch of the NFC Championship Game, where Los Angeles had won a 9-0 defensive affair. This one was more of the same—the Rams led 9-3 after three quarters, meaning these two teams managed to go seven straight quarters without a touchdown.

But this time it caught up with LA. Ferragamo threw four interceptions and they ended up losing 10-0. Los Angeles quickly bounced back at home against the Green Bay Packers. Johnnie Johnson returned an interception 99 yards for a touchdown and Perry brought one back 83 yards in a 51-21 rout.

The Rams traveled to New York to play a bad Giants team, and got three rushing touchdowns from Peacock in an easy 28-7 win. A home game with the San Francisco 49ers resulted in another day where the Ram defense returned two interceptions for touchdowns in a 48-26 rout.

Los Angeles went to the city they would one day call home to play the St. Louis Cardinals. Bryant ran for 115 yards as the Rams controlled the trenches, and Ferragamo played mistake-free in a 21-13 win. Another victory over the 49ers followed, this one on the road. Ferragamo was brilliant, going 18/28 for 291 yards and four touchdown passes, the second time he’d outplayed the still-developing Joe Montana.

The Rams were 5-2 and riding a five-game winning streak, but none of the wins had come against teams that would finish any better than 6-10. The Atlanta Falcons were emerging as the main challenger in the old NFC West (which included the 49ers and New Orleans Saints). Los Angeles was set for a visit to Atlanta on October 26.

It was a defensive struggle, and the Rams trailed 6-3 in the third quarter. Ferragamo stepped up with a 74-yard touchdown strike to Hill to get the lead, but Atlanta’s Steve Bartkowski, enjoying a Pro Bowl year, threw a 54-yard TD pass of his own and Los Angeles lost 13-10.

A visit from the Saints, the worst team in the NFL in 1980, was just what LA needed to bounce back and Ferragamo threw three first-quarter touchdown passes to put the Rams out to a 31-0 lead. Peacock and Bryant combined for 180 rush yards to salt away a 45-31 win that was never that close. But the Rams gave it back the next week at home against the Miami Dolphins.

Ferragamo threw four interceptions, the defense allowed 280 rush yards and the Rams lost to an average team 35-14 in a game they were an (-11) home favorite. The veteran Los Angeles defense stepped it up the next week on the road against a potent New England Patriots offense. The Rams won a hard-fought 17-14 game to get back on track.

Los Angeles was on the Monday Night stage at New Orleans just prior to Thanksgiving. They got off to a sluggish start offensively and the game was scoreless into the second quarter. Then some trickery loosened things up, when running back Mike Guman threw a touchdown pass and LA coasted in to a 27-7 win.

The record was 8-4 and the playoff race was hot in both directions. The Falcons led the NFC West at 9-3. Los Angeles was in position to make the playoffs as the second wild-card (the format in 1980 had two wild-card qualifiers along with three division winners), but Detroit was right behind them at 7-5 and holding the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Rams had little margin for error.

Ferragamo did not play well at home against the New York Jets, throwing four interceptions. But the opponent was bad, and the running game was strong, with Peacock going for 152 yards in a 38-13 blowout. Another AFC East opponent was next, the Buffalo Bills, who would eventually win that division. Ferragamo only threw one interception this time, but it was returned for a touchdown. It was the only TD the Rams allowed, but that was all it took in a 10-7 overtime loss.

The loss pushed the Rams two games back of Atlanta with two to play. The rivals would meet in LA for the final game of the season and since Los Angeles pulling even presumed they would defeat Atlanta, the Rams would also take the tiebreakers. On the other side, Detroit had come up short in the clutch and was at 7-7, meaning one more win would lock up at least a wild-card for the Rams.

But getting that win was not going to be easy, even with both games at home. Before the finale with Atlanta, Los Angeles had to play the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football. The Cowboys were in a tough fight with the Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East title, with the runner-up set for a wild-card.

The Rams responded with their best game of the season. They led 7-0 after one quarter and then unleashed. Jewerl Thomas, the third running back, took off on a 34-yard touchdown jaunt. Ferragamo hit Waddy from 40 yards out, and then found Dennard on a 34-yard TD pass. The score was 38-0 by the time the fourth quarter started and only then did LA let up, and Dallas picked up a couple meaningless touchdowns.

Atlanta had also won, so the season finale had only marginal importance. The Rams were set to go on the road for the wild-card game, though they could get homefield if Dallas lost at home to Philadelphia. Atlanta had the #1 seed in hand, though they could lose it if Philadelphia beat Dallas. The Rams-Falcons and Cowboys-Eagles kicked off at the same time and it became quickly apparent that Dallas would win, rendering the game out west meaningless. It was still a good game and went into overtime before LA won 20-17.

The Rams visited Dallas for the NFC wild-card game. Los Angeles had pulled an upset in this venue the previous January, and their Monday Night humiliation of the Cowboys was fresh in everyone’s mind. The Rams started well, scoring two touchdowns and holding Dallas in the red zone on a couple occasions. But LA missed an extra point and the game was tied 13-13 at half.

Then the season ended the way it began, with a collapse of the rush defense. Dallas ended up with 338 rushing yards and the Cowboys took over, en route to a 34-13 win.

The 1980 Los Angeles Rams proved to be the last playoff team for head coach Ray Malavasi, who had taken over in 1978. Malavasi slipped under .500 the next year and after another losing season in 1982, was fired. The Rams returned to the playoffs by 1983 under the leadership of John Robinson.

The Game-By-Game Narrative Of The 1980 New England Patriots

, , , , , ,

The New England Patriots became a consistently good team in the latter half of the 1970s. They made the playoffs in 1976 and 1978, and had winning seasons in 1977 and 1979, a period that covered two head coaches, Chuck Fairbanks and Ron Erhardt. The 1980 New England Patriots continued the pattern of winning, but they also came up short of the postseason.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Erhardt had a team that could put up points, ranking second in the NFL in scoring. It was an attack that spread the ball around. Rookie running back Vegas Ferguson split carries with fullback Don Calhoun. Tight end Russ Francis was a reliable pass-catcher, as was wide receiver Harold Jackson.

The prime target was Pro Bowl receiver Stanley Morgan, who finished just shy of 1,000 yards receiving and the best player on the entire team was 1st-team All-NFL guard John Hannah, perhaps the greatest offensive lineman to ever play in the NFL. This cast, both well-balanced and having stars, was the right blend and they were led by quarterback Steve Grogan and his boom or bust nature.

Defensively is where the Patriots lost ground, finishing 17th in points allowed. Ironically, they had more Pro Bowl talent on this side of the ball than on offense. The secondary was the strength, with corner Mike Haynes and free safety Tim Fox each Pro Bowlers, and talented 25-year-old Raymond Clayborn on the other corner.

The other Pro Bowlers were defensive end Julius Adams and inside linebacker Steve Nelson. But the same depth and consistency the offense had was missing, and Grogan’s interception tendency—he finished with an 18/22 TD-INT ratio, didn’t help the defense’s points allowed ranking.

New England opened the season with the Cleveland Browns, and Grogan was sharp. He threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jackson, a 67-yard strike to Morgan and a third TD pass to Don Hasselbeck, on the way to a 17/26 for 277 yards performance. The Patriots led 34-3 and closed out a 34-17 win. It was a victory that would loom large in the final week of the playoff chase.

The Atlanta Falcons were up next, and it was the second straight game against an opponent that would win double-digit games in the 1980 NFL season. At the time though, the Falcons were like the Patriots—a team that had slipped in 1979 after a playoff year in ’78. New England was a (-8) favorite, but were carved up by Falcon quarterback Steve Bartkowski in a 37-21 loss.

Pass coverage was a problem again the next week at the Seattle Seahawks. As this article is written, the most recent Patriots-Seahawks game was an epic Super Bowl battle. In 1980, the Seahawks were in the AFC, they played indoors and they were bad. Therefore, winning 37-31 was nice, and Grogan threw for 271 yards, but another bad performance in pass coverage was cause for concern.

The Patriots came back to Foxboro for a Monday Night game with the Denver Broncos, an average team who had also missed the playoffs in ’79 after good years in 1977-78. New England trailed 14-10 in the third quarter, but they were playing great defense, holding Denver to eight first downs for the game. Eventually, Grogan hit Morgan on a 45-yard touchdown pass to get the lead and they eventually won 23-14.

Grogan had to leave the following week in old Shea Stadium against the New York Jets, but Matt Cavanaugh stepped in and went 9/15 for 155 yards. Haynes returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown in the second quarter and New England won 21-11. The team came back home and dominated the defending AFC East champ Miami Dolphins. The Patriots won the rushing battle 180-61 and Clayborn’s two interceptions were part of a four-pick day for the defense as a whole. The result was a 34-0 shutout.

New England won their third straight AFC East game, beating the Baltimore Colts (the Colts joined the four current teams of the AFC East in the pre-2002 alignment) 37-21. The Pats trailed this one 21-17 in the third quarter before Horace Ivory returned a kick for a touchdown. Grogan played a sharp game, 15/24 for 264 yards and no mistakes, while Haynes and Clayborn each picked off Baltimore quarterback Bert Jones.

The Patriots were rolling at 6-1 and heading into Buffalo for a showdown game with the 5-2 Bills. New England got the game’s opening field goal and were still within 14-13 going into the fourth quarter. But they weren’t running the ball and Grogan threw four interceptions. The game got away, 31-13 and there was a tie for first in the AFC East.

A strong outing at home against the Jets followed. Grogan hit Francis for a 33-yard touchdown pass, Roland James returned a punt for a touchdown and the Patriots built a 24-0 lead, coasting home 34-21. The second of three Monday Night games was next, in Houston, against an Oiler team that reached each of the two previous AFC Championship Games.

Houston had the game’s best running back in Earl Campbell and this was another game that would loom large in the playoff picture. The Patriots weren’t ready though, and dug themselves a 24-6 hole. Grogan threw for 374 yards in a noble attempt to bring them back, but it came up short, 38-34. Another loss against a good team followed, this one at home against the Los Angeles Rams. The 17-14 defeat was caused by five turnovers, while the Rams took better care of the ball.

New England needed to get back on track and a visit from Baltimore was what they needed. With a 10-0 lead, the Patriots Rod Shoate took an interception 42 yards to the house. With a 20-7 lead, Rick Sanford scooped up a fumble at the Colt 20 and ran it in. And Allan Clark put the finishing touches on the defensive scoring trifecta recovering a fumble inside the Baltimore red zone and rolling into the end zone. The final was 47-21.

The Patriots were 8-4 and still in good position, even though they were a game back of the Bills. Then came a disastrous trip to San Francisco. Joe Montana was still developing and a year away from getting the NFL side of his legendary career going. All the Pats needed to do was not beat themselves—but Grogan threw six interceptions in a 21-17 loss.

Fortunately, Buffalo also lost, New England’s next game was Monday Night in Miami. The Dolphins would finish 8-8, but when Don Shula coached there, the Orange Bowl was the house of horrors—for most teams, but it seemed especially so for the Patriots. Cavanaugh started, played turnover-free and had New England ahead 13-6. But Miami tied it in the fourth quarter and won it in overtime.

There were two weeks left, and at 8-6, the Patriots were teetering, with Buffalo at 10-4. The good news was this—the Bills were coming to Foxboro and New England would control the tiebreaker, based on division record, so long as they could win this game and split the head-to-head series.

The Patriot defense responded with its best game of the year, even better than the October shutout of Miami. Against a better offense, the Pats won the game 24-2. New England still needed help, but they had a lot going for them. The Patriots had two possible avenues—the Bills might lose and open the door to win the AFC East. The Week 1 win over the Browns now stood out, as a Cleveland loss would drop them behind Houston in that division race, and leave the Browns at 10-6—where the Patriots could pull even and take a wild-card spot on the head-to-head tiebreaker.

And just as important, New England was playing the worst team in the NFL in the New Orleans Saints. The Pats did manage to make it a little interesting, falling behind 10-0 and 27-24 before scoring two fourth quarter touchdowns with Cavanaugh at quarterback.

Now it was time to hope. Buffalo was playing with an injured quarterback, as Joe Ferguson had hurt his ankle in the game at Foxboro. But the Bills did what the Patriots could not, and that was fight out a win at San Francisco, 18-13. Cleveland also got a stiff test from a potential spoiler, at Cincinnati, trailing 17-10 and being tied 24-24 late in the game. But the Browns also survived on a late field goal.

The paths to both the AFC East and a wild-card berth had been cut off. New England was 10-6 in a conference where no team won more than 11 games, but it wasn’t enough to make the playoffs.

Nor were things about to get better—a year later the franchise would collapse and finish with the league’s worst record. They snuck back into the playoffs in the strange strike-shortened year of 1982, but otherwise spent a few years in the wilderness before returning to prominence in a long-awaited run to the Super Bowl in 1985.

The 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers Mark The End Of An Era

, , , , , ,

The 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers marked the end of one of the great dynasties in NFL history. The Steelers had won the Super Bowl in four of the previous six years, including both 1978 and 1979. Pittsburgh won the old AFC Central division each year from 1972-79 and at least reached the AFC Championship Game six times. In 1980, age caught up with the Steelers and the era came to an end.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 

Eleven starters were age 30 or older coming into the 1980 NFL season. Two important defensive lineman, L.C. Greenwood and Joe Greene, were 34, as was running back Rocky Bleier. Injuries didn’t help either—John Stallworth, the talented young wide receiver who should have been the MVP of the prior year’s Super Bowl, missed all but three games.

Pittsburgh’s offense had two Pro Bowlers, running back Franco Harris and 1st-team All-Pro center Mike Webster and still finished 10th in the NFL in points scored. Quarterback Terry Bradshaw threw for over 3,300 yards and wide receiver Jim Smith stepped into the void left by Stallworth’s injury, and paired up with veteran wideout Lynn Swann.

Defensively is where the slippages was most notable. Jack Ham and Jack Lambert were each Pro Bowl linebackers, the latter a 1st-team All-Pro. But the age factor was most noticeable on defense and they finished 15th in what was then a 28-team NFL in points allowed. The famed “Steel Curtain” was in the lower half of the league in giving up points.

The season opener was an anticipated battle with the Houston Oilers, a division rival in the old alignment (the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns were the other two teams in the AFC Central). Pittsburgh had beaten Houston in each of the previous two AFC Championship Games. Houston had made a big trade for Oakland Raider quarterback Ken Stabler and was talking openly about this being their year.

In today’s NFL, this would have been a prime-time Thursday night battle to start the season. In 1980, it was just a 1 PM ET kickoff in the Steel City, and there was no sign of an imminent Steeler decline. Bradshaw threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to running back Sidney Thornton and Pittsburgh jumped out to a 17-0 lead.

Houston rallied to tie it 17-17, but the Steelers took over the fourth quarter. Their early lead had taken the great Oiler running back, Earl Campbell, out of the offensive rhythm and Pittsburgh picked off Stabler five times, twice apiece by corner Mel Blount and safety Donnie Shell. Bradshaw scored on a quarterback sneak and threw a 50-yard scoring strike to Stallworth to seal a 31-17 win.

The Steelers were a little sluggish at the mediocre Baltimore Colts the next week and trailed 7-6 after Bradshaw threw an early Pick-6. But then he hit Smith on a 24-yard touchdown pass to get the lead and Pittsburgh overcame self-inflicted wounds—they committed eleven penalties—to win 30-28.

Pittsburgh continued to beat themselves the following week at lowly Cincinnati, and this time the Steelers couldn’t escape. Bradshaw again had an interception returned for a touchdown and the team lost four fumbles. The defensive problems began to be exposed, as they couldn’t hold a 28-20 lead in the fourth quarter and lost 30-28.

Bradshaw got rolling the following week at home against the Chicago Bears, going 12/19 for 217 yards and four touchdowns, two of them to Smith who had a big game with six catches overall. The result was an easy 38-3 win. Pittsburgh beat another NFC opponent the next week, at the Minnesota Vikings. Harris ran for 102 yards, Shell led a defense that intercepted five passes and the Steelers led 23-3 and won 23-17.

Pittsburgh wasn’t dominating anyone, but if you dug into their previous championship runs, that had been the case before. With a record of 4-1, there was no reason for anyone in west-central Pennsylvania to back off on the “One For The Thumb” motto that was driving the franchise’s push for a then-unprecedented fifth Super Bowl title (no one else had more than two championships in 1980).

No one could have expected that a revenge game at home with the Bengals would go awry. The Steelers dug themselves a 17-0 hole and though they rallied, a missed PAT was the difference in a 17-16 loss. Then they lost at home on Monday Night to the Raiders. Pittsburgh allowed repeated big plays in the passing game to Oakland quarterback Jim Plunkett (who was replacing the injured Dan Pastorini, who replaced the traded Stabler).

Even though Oakland would eventually win the Super Bowl, Pittsburgh still came into the game a (-10) favorite and ended up losing 45-34. Even worse, Bradshaw was injured and missed the next week in Cleveland. His own backup, Cliff Stoudt, played well, going 18/37 for 310 yards and putting the Steelers in position to win with a 26-14 lead. But the pass defense again came apart, giving up 349 passing yards to future league MVP Brian Sipe, and two fourth quarter touchdown passes to lose it.

Unbelievably, the Steeler Dynasty was 4-4 at the halfway point. Bradshaw returned at home against the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh won 22-20 behind the running of Thornton and Harris. Then they won 24-21 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Bleier had his best game of the year, with a 135-75 rushing yardage edge making up for another poor display of pass defense.

The two wins kept Pittsburgh in playoff contention, although they were unimpressive games against bad teams. The Steelers were a game back of both the Browns and Oilers, but they had games ahead against both rivals and the first was coming up next—a November 16 home date with Cleveland.

It would be a stretch to say that Bradshaw rose to the occasion. He threw four interceptions and the Steelers trailed 13-7 in the fourth quarter before the defense got a safety and cut the lead to four points. With the late afternoon shadows shrouding Three Rivers Stadium and seeming like an apt metaphor for the dynasty, Bradshaw finally stepped up. He led a drive that concluded with a three-yard touchdown pass to Swann with 11 seconds left. The 16-13 win kept Pittsburgh alive.

But a tough game at Buffalo the following week didn’t go well. The Bills were on their way to an 11-5 season and playoff appearance and they ran over the Steelers with 178 rush yards and dominated the second half. Pittsburgh lost 28-13, but they were able to reverse their fortunes on the ground and on the scoreboard a week later at home with the Miami Dolphins. A 168-81 rushing edge, with a big day from Harris, produced a 23-10 win.

Pittsburgh’s 8-5 record had them a game back of Cleveland and tied with Houston. Now a Thursday Night game—a special occasion in 1980—matched up the Steelers and Oilers in the Astrodome.

It would be an offensive embarrassment of breathtaking proportions. Even though the Pittsburgh defense held Campbell to 81 yards rushing and did run for 160 yards of their own, they also turned the ball over five times. The ugly result was a 6-0 loss that tainted the TV sets of the national audience.

Pittsburgh’s back was to the wall in a home game with the mediocre Kansas City Chiefs. The champs still fell behind 16-7, but by holding KC to just 84 yards passing, there was time to come back and that’s what Bradshaw did, leading a 21-16 win. The Steelers were 9-6 and hoping their season finale—on a Monday Night with the high-powered San Diego Chargers—would mean something.

The problem was that Pittsburgh’s play against AFC opponents had been poor. They swept their four games with NFC teams, but the conference record of 5-6 and the division record of 2-4—driven by the losses to the Bengals—was looming over them.

Pittsburgh was losing tiebreakers against every contender, be it head-to-head or otherwise—Cleveland, Houston, Oakland, San Diego, Buffalo and New England (the latter who ended up missing the playoffs at 10-6) were all in better shape than Pittsburgh.

Consequently, the Steelers were eliminated by the time they took the field in San Diego. The Chargers were playing for a division title and the #1 seed in the AFC playoffs, but after nearly a decade of unparalleled excellence, Pittsburgh wasn’t going to get excited about playing spoiler. The season ended with a lifeless 26-17 loss.

The 9-7 finish was not something that would be reversed. Pittsburgh missed the playoffs in 1981, and while they returned to the postseason from 1982-84, they were never a serious championship contender. Bradshaw was moved out during this timeframe and the rebuilding of the proud franchise had to begin.

The Playoff Teams Of The 1980 NFL Season

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Read the story of the 1980 NFL season as told from the perspective of the 11 most consequential teams. Each section consists of a discussion of each team’s key players and then a game-by-game narrative of their drive through the season.

No wild-card team had ever won the Super Bowl prior to the 1980 NFL season, and three years earlier the league had made it even more difficult. They expanded the playoffs to five teams per conference, but with a three-divisional alignment similar to what major league baseball uses today, the wild-cards would now have to win an extra game for the first time. In spite of these obstacles, the Oakland Raiders pulled it off and went the distance.

This blog compilation contains the complete game-by-game narratives of every notable team in the 1980 NFL season, starting with…

*The Raiders and Houston Oilers pull off a big quarterbacks swap of Ken Stabler-for-Dan Pastorini, but it ends up being Jim Plunkett who makes the biggest mark of them all.

See how Oakland began to come together around the 1980 season’s midway point and how Houston seemed close to fulfilling their dream of a Super Bowl run behind powerful back Earl Campbell, but first lost tiebreakers and then lost a wild-card playoff game…ironically in Oakland.

*In the NFC East, the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys were both at the top of the NFL and jousted all season for the top. See the strange way the Eagles “beat” the Cowboys in the season’s final week. It proved to be a historic year for both franchises—Philadelphia made its first Super Bowl trip and Dallas began the post-Roger Staubach era.

*The Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns each had magical years, and both were in positions to win playoff games at home, against the more tradition-laden Cowboys and Raiders respectively. Each had their hearts ripped out. Read how their rises to prominence came about before the fall.

*The San Diego Chargers continued to be the league’s most exciting offense with Dan Fouts at quarterback, and went all-in to try and win in 1980. Read how they survived Oakland in the AFC West during the season before losing to the Raiders in the playoffs.

*The Buffalo Bills stepped up and won the AFC East. Read how an excellent head coach in Chuck Knox guided a team through the season even though they didn’t have the best talent.

*The Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Rams, two powers of the 1970s, would fade briefly in this decade, but still had enough in the tank to reach the playoffs. Read how the Vikings crawled to the finish line in a weak NFC Central, aided by a miracle pass, and the Rams played their way into the postseason a year after making a Super Bowl run.

*And how can we forget the Pittsburgh Steelers? They didn’t make the playoffs, but this was the two-time defending Super Bowl champion, with four titles in the previous six years. “One For The Thumb” was the rallying cry. You’ll read how they came up short, as well as the moments at the early and mid-points when it seemed like they were still in position to make a championship run.

Each of these articles is published individually on TheSportsNotebook.com and editing has been done to eliminate obvious redundancies. Taken together, these eleven articles tell the story of the 1980 NFL season through the eyes of its most consequential teams. Download it from Amazon today.

Load More